How Respond is redefining communities and innovating for a brighter future

With over four decades of experience, Respond has established itself as a significant player in creating sustainable communities and providing high-quality living environments for thousands of families.

Beyond Bricks and Mortar: Building Communities

When families move into a Respond home, they receive more than just a set of keys. Respond’s approach ensures that each home is part of a thoughtfully planned community. The organisation’s housing service delivery model is tailored to the unique needs of each area, providing consistent and high-quality support from the initial move-in and beyond, continuing for a lifetime. Homes come with practical amenities like flooring and wardrobes, which help tenants settle in more comfortably and quickly.

Ambitious Expansion Plans

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Respond’s ambitious plans to increase their social and cost rental homes in the coming months, signals a period of significant growth. Backed by Local Authorities and with fixed-price contracts with leading developers, Respond currently has 2,069 homes in construction across the country with a further 1,950 homes about to commence. All forming part of Respond’s ambitious growth plans to increase their social and cost rental homes on mixed tenure developments in the coming months to address housing need.

A cornerstone of their expansion is their “urban village” placemaking approach. These developments are designed to create small, integrated neighbourhoods within larger urban settings. The aim is to foster pedestrian-friendly, diverse, and strong communities, blending residential, commercial, and public spaces. This modern approach to urban planning seeks to enhance the quality of life for residents and create cohesive, vibrant communities.

These homes are of the highest quality and design. Respond are a construction led Approved Housing Body with their own team of registered architects, technicians, quantity surveyors and construction managers who are working with top developers such as Cairn Homes, Ardstone Homes and Bluemont Developments to deliver homes much needed homes. The organisation has over two thousand homes in construction right now, the latest of which has just broken ground in Finglas (Dublin). This scheme will deliver 597 homes with Cairn Homes, all built to Passiv Haus standards (a building standard that is truly energy efficient, comfortable, affordable and environmental at the same time). It will be one of the largest schemes in Europe built to such high quality specifications.

Service Delivery Model

Respond’s housing service delivery model for their tenants is unique. Employing a trauma-informed approach, decisions are made swiftly and locally to ensure the best outcome for tenants. This flexible, responsive model allows the organisation to meet the diverse needs of its tenants effectively. Additionally, Respond’s own Family and Community Support Services are on hand to provide assistance, ensuring that support is available when needed.

The organisation prioritises adding value to the communities in which they operate and helping tenants establish links with existing local community groups and services. By fostering relationships with local schools, GAA clubs, and other community organisations, Respond ensures tenants quickly develop a sense of belonging and pride in their new surroundings.

Constantly innovating – the Brain Health Village

Respond pride themselves on being a listening and learning organisation – listening to their tenant feedback (which is an impressive 92% tenant satisfaction rate independently verified by Behaviour and Attitudes) and being innovative and curious in their approach to continuous improvement. One such approach has developed into a long-standing collaboration with Trinity College’s Global Brain Health Institute who are working with Respond on a pilot Brain Health Village in a Respond development in Baltinglass, Co Wicklow. The project has already garnered attention, winning the Chartered Institute of Housing award for Excellence in Health and Wellbeing 2024.

The Brain Health Village aims to demonstrate that high-quality housing, environments and strong communities—promoting creativity, health, and social connectedness—can yield long-term brain health benefits. The initial phase is introducing the brain health concept to tenants and the wider community, creating a framework for a brain health-friendly environment and identifying short and medium term goals. The project is now managed on the ground by the local Housing team who work with tenants there on a day-to-day basis. Respond are working with the Global Brain Health Institute to track the implementation process and outcomes.

The Housing Leadership Team

Respond’s progressive approach extends to its workplace culture. The organisation encourages innovation and intrapreneurship, providing opportunities for staff to lead and develop new projects. Employees benefit from a supportive culture that emphasises coaching, empowerment and mutual growth.

The Housing department is led by the Director of Housing Neil Bolton, supported by John O’Sullivan, Head of Tenant Experience and Ciaran Andrews, Head of Strategic Asset Management.

Recruiting

As Respond continues to expand, they are recruiting values driven housing, estate and asset management experts who are keen to grow and develop, focused on high quality customer service provision, open to new ways of working, and have the leadership abilities that enables teams to flourish. The Housing Team are currently recruiting for a new role as part of their Leadership team, Head of Estate Services. The organisation is keen to bring in a talented, creative and proven leader to ensure that the public spaces around the homes are places that all tenants can enjoy and choose to spend time in.

Respond is more than a housing provider. It is a community builder, an innovator, and a partner in creating a better future for Ireland. Whether you are in search of a new home or a fulfilling career, Respond offers a unique and promising opportunity.