NEWS

St Patrick’s housing development in Ballymena A new community hub bringing health, welfare, housing and policing support directly to residents of Ballymena’s St Patrick’s development will officially open this week. Radius Housing will launch the new St Patrick’s Community Hub on Thursday 13 August, creating a dedicated space within the 135-home development where tenants can access regular advice clinics and community services close to home. The Hub has been developed followin

Site plan for proposed 37 home development in Toomebridge, refused by Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council Tuesday, 4 August 2026 A proposed residential development of 37 new homes at Loughview Drive in Toomebridge has been refused planning permission by Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council’s Planning Committee following significant local opposition, including 176 objections. The application sought permission for nine detached houses, 18 semi-detached houses and 10 apar

Site for proposed apartments complex on Springwell Street, Ballymena Plans for a nine-apartment development at Fountain Place in Ballymena have been refused by Mid and East Antrim Borough Council over concerns about privacy, overlooking and the quality of accommodation for future residents. The application sought permission to demolish an existing dwelling and outbuildings at 23 Fountain Place and replace them with a development of nine apartments. Access to the site would ha

A total of 260 new homes were completed across Mid and East Antrim during the financial year from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026, according to a new council report. Presented to Mid and East Antrim Borough Council’s Planning Committee at The Braid in Ballymena on Thursday, the Housing Land Availability Report shows Ballymena accounted for 41 per cent of all new homes completed during the year, ahead of Carrickfergus (13 per cent) and Larne (almost 12 per cent). The report also

CGI showing elevations of approved plans to create 19 town centre apartments at a historic former bank building in Ballymena. Planning permission has been granted to transform a historic former bank building in Ballymena town centre into 19 apartments. Mid and East Antrim Borough Council’s Planning Committee approved the application at a meeting in The Braid on Thursday morning. The proposal will see the partial demolition of the building at 97 Mill Street, alongside its ada

Inset: UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham Households in Northern Ireland are set to receive financial support with electricity costs this winter after the UK Government announced plans to remove VAT from domestic electricity bills across Great Britain from 1 October. Because of post-Brexit VAT arrangements, the tax change cannot automatically apply in Northern Ireland, meaning the Northern Ireland Executive will instead receive comparable funding to ensure local households benefi

The scenes on Thursday when a fight broke out among a number of men in a Ballymena housing estate. A street fight involving weapons in one of Ballymena’s newest housing developments has led to three arrests, after an incident that unfolded while children were playing nearby prompted renewed concern from local residents about ongoing antisocial behaviour in the area. Witnesses described seeing a number of men involved in a violent confrontation in St Patrick’s Place at around

The array of solar panels positioned on the roof of Causeway Hospital in Coleraine Causeway Hospital has saved almost £142,000 on electricity costs in the first year since installing Northern Ireland’s largest solar roof on a Health and Social Care building, according to the Northern Health and Social Care Trust. The hospital’s 2,300 rooftop solar panels generated enough renewable electricity during 2025-26 to offset electricity costs by around £141,700, while also preventing

Households across Northern Ireland who rely on home heating oil could benefit from stronger consumer protections after the UK’s competition watchdog called for new regulations to better safeguard customers during periods of price volatility. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has recommended that the UK Government and Northern Ireland Executive introduce a new regulatory framework for the heating oil sector, arguing that the current system leaves around 1.5 million U

Around 105,000 Budget Energy customers across Northern Ireland are set to pay more for their electricity from next month after the supplier announced a 9.5% increase to its variable tariffs. The increase, which takes effect from 4 August 2026, will add around £122 a year to the bill of a typical BillPay customer and approximately £121 a year for a standard-rate keypad customer, adding further pressure to household finances at a time when electricity prices continue to rise ac

Businesses across Northern Ireland are reporting lower levels of concern about their energy bills and greater confidence in their suppliers, according to new research published by the Utility Regulator. However, despite signs of improvement, around one in five businesses remain worried about the cost of energy, underlining the continued pressure facing many firms as prices remain significantly higher than they were before the pandemic. The findings come from the Utility Regul

The scene at Ballycastle Golf Club where a car crashed and overturned before being destroyed by fire. (Photo: McAuley Multimedia) A vehicle was destroyed by fire after leaving the road and crashing into the grounds of Ballycastle Golf Club in the early hours of Sunday morning. The dramatic incident happened on the Cushendall Road in Ballycastle, where the vehicle came to rest on its side after ploughing through boundary structures before it was engulfed in flames. Photographs

A planning application has been lodged with Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council for a proposed second phase of a solar farm at Dublin Road, outside Antrim, which developers say could generate enough electricity to power more than 5,000 homes. The proposal is for a 20MW solar farm and associated infrastructure, including ground-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on support frames, two transformer cabins, fencing, CCTV cameras, an internal service road, landscaping, and

A planning application has been lodged with Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council for a proposed new social housing development comprising 14 dwellings in Toomebridge. The application for full planning permission has been submitted by an agent on behalf of JAMDAC Developments Ltd, of Hillhead Road, Toomebridge, for lands to the rear of 36-42 Main Street. The proposal includes the demolition of an existing property at 42 Main Street and the creation of a new access road to s

The site off the Dans Road being cleared with local residents reporting the removal of ‘several ancient trees’ Opponents of a controversial housing development beside Ballymena’s Braid River Walk say their campaign is far from over after holding a community information night this week following the recent planning decision that approved the scheme in principle. Residents and campaign supporters gathered at the Leighinmohr House Hotel on Thursday evening, June 2, to hear updat

Inset: Communities Minister Gordon Lyons Communities Minister Gordon Lyons has pledged tougher action against social housing fraud in Northern Ireland as a new public consultation launches on proposals to strengthen powers against those abusing the system. The move comes amid continuing pressure on social housing across Northern Ireland, with the Department estimating tenancy fraud and misuse costs the public purse around £9.9 million every year. Officials believe the true co

Thousands of households across Northern Ireland are set to see their electricity bills rise again next month after SSE Airtricity announced a tariff increase of 6.2%. The increase, which takes effect from 1 August 2026, will add around £76 a year to the bill of a typical credit customer and standard-rate keypad customer. For many households already dealing with higher living costs, the latest rise means annual electricity costs for a typical SSE Airtricity customer will incre

Mill House in Harryville; Councillor Lawrie Philpott attended the property. Residents in Harryville have been reassured that nobody is currently living in the long-vacant Mill House building on Henry Street in Ballymena following concerns circulating on social media about activity at the site. The former hostel, located close to Harryville Bridge, has remained vacant since closing in 2019 and has recently become the subject of online speculation regarding people allegedly ent

The chair of the Northern Ireland Housing Council has underlined the importance of resolving Northern Ireland’s housing crisis in a bid to build stronger communities. Knockagh Alliance councillor Aaron Skinner, who is also a member of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council’s Planning Committee, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service there are approximately 50,000 applicants on the Northern Ireland Housing Executive’s waiting list across Northern Ireland. At the end of March

Rent a garage: Housing Executive garages are available to rent at sites across Mid and East Antrim. People across Mid and East Antrim are being offered the chance to rent secure garage space for little more than £12 a week, as the Housing Executive makes a number of garages available in Ballymena, Carrickfergus and Larne. The garages, which are available to both Housing Executive tenants and members of the wider public, are being offered at a weekly rental rate of approximat