New residents celebrate at St Patrick’s shared housing development in Ballymena

Mayor of Mid & East Antrim Mayor, Jackson Minford, joins Sonic the Hedgehog, Kevin the Minion, at a community celebration event at St Patrick's Housing development, along with Loma Wilson, Radius Housing, and Grainne Mullin, NIHE. 

Residents of the new St Patrick’s shared housing development in Ballymena came together this week for a special Tenants Welcome Event to celebrate the completion of the new homes and the beginning of a vibrant new community.

Held on Wednesday 29th October, the event marked the full allocation of homes within the development and was attended by the Mayor of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council, Jackson Minford.

The family-friendly celebration featured children’s activities, live entertainment, food stalls and information stands from local community groups. It provided an opportunity for new neighbours to get to know one another while the wider Ballymena community came together to celebrate the transformation of the former St Patrick’s Barracks site.

The Welcome Event followed the official opening of the development by Communities Minister Gordon Lyons on 3rd September, when he marked the completion of 135 new homes delivered by Radius Housing.

The completed development consists of 32 apartments, including wheelchair accessible units, and 113 houses, ten of which are available for private sale as affordable homes.

Construction began in August 2022, with MJ McBride as the lead contractor. In addition to new homes and significant road infrastructure improvements, the project has also provided a children’s play park for local families.

Speaking at the event, Loma Wilson, Director of Communities at Radius Housing, said:

“We were delighted to bring everyone together today to celebrate not just the new homes, but the new community that is forming here at St Patrick’s. Days like this help to build connections and friendships that will make this a strong and vibrant neighbourhood.”

The St Patrick’s shared housing development forms part of a £160 million masterplan led by the Department for Communities, and is supported through the Housing Executive’s ‘Housing for All’ Shared Housing Programme.

The Programme has its origins in the NI Executive’s Together: Building a United Community Strategy, which aims to improve community relations and promote a more united and shared society.

A potential £16.9 million is being invested in the development and its accompanying five-year Good Relations Plan.

Radius Housing currently has 15 shared housing developments across Northern Ireland. Eleven of these are in the process of developing or delivering their five-year Good Relations Plans, while the remaining four continue to champion good relations through ongoing community engagement.

The St Patrick’s Barracks Good Relations Plan includes a range of community “bonding” events designed to help residents build friendships, promote health and wellbeing, and foster a strong sense of community belonging.

Radius Housing is one of Northern Ireland’s leading social and affordable housing providers, constructing around 300 new homes each year. The organisation manages over 14,000 social homes and provides care and support services to thousands of people annually.