Helm Housing merger plans on hold

Discussions on a possible merger between three of Northern Irelands leading housing organisations around the possibility of forming a new, single organisation have ended without agreement on a new body. A working group including representatives from Helm Housing, Oaklee Homes Group and Trinity Housing had begun to explore the potential of a merger and discussions had taken place over the last number of months. Oaklee Homes Group and Trinity Housing now intend to complete a merger between these two organisations shortly.

A spokesman for the Housing Associations said today,

We recognise that the environment in which social housing is delivered and managed is changing. Each of our organisations is committed to delivering the most efficient and effective service we can for our tenants, while enhancing our development capacity. That was the rationale behind the establishment of a working group and our exploratory discussions. At this time however we have jointly concluded that a formal merger of the three associations is not the most productive way forward.

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