Property

Best in housing celebrated at annual awards

Winners of the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) Housing Awards 2017 were announced on Friday past (February 24) at Titanic Belfast. The annual awards, now in their eighth year, aim to recognise the people making a difference in housing and communities across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Close to 300 people attended the ceremony which was sponsored by Choice Housing. The award winners were decided by an independent panel of expert judges, except for best housing story which was chosen by public vote.

The CIH professional and young professional of the year awards were respectively awarded to Clare McCarty, chief executive of Clanmil Housing and Ciaran McLaughlin, housing officer at Helm Housing. Ms McCarty and Mr McLaughlin go through to represent Northern Ireland at the national Housing Heroes Awards, which will take place in June at Housing 2017 – CIH’s annual conference in Manchester.

Nicola McCrudden, CIH director for Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, said: “These awards showcase the excellent work being done to support people with housing needs in our communities. 

“The past year has not been without its challenges and it is more important than ever to celebrate the contribution of the housing and homelessness sectors to society.”