Preparing for lift-off: Passivhaus homes in Northern Ireland

We’re seeing large-scale house builders moving to Passivhaus, including Ireland’s Cairn Homes and the UK’s Barratt London. Cairn is currently working with Tuath Housing to deliver over 500 Passivhaus social housing homes in Santry, Dublin. The first 156 will be delivered in December 2025. 

By comparison, Northern Ireland’s Passivhaus social housing schemes have been a little slower off the starting blocks. A recently completed six-house pilot scheme in Belfast has just received Passivhaus certification. Sunningdale Gardens, the Northern Ireland Housing Executive’s (NIHE) first directly delivered new build housing project in 25 years, is the first MMC Passivhaus-certified social housing project delivered in Northern Ireland. 

“We’re seeing large-scale house builders moving to Passivhaus, including Ireland’s Cairn Homes and the UK’s Barratt London”

The NIHE was the client, architect and project manager on the scheme, which was constructed using a rapid build technique and onsite MMC. The completed Sunningdale Gardens homes are undergoing independent monitoring, measuring indoor air quality, energy consumption and occupant satisfaction.

NIHE is already reporting benefits for occupants including lower heating bills and comfortable, healthy indoor environments.  

Other Passivhaus social housing schemes currently underway in Northern Ireland include a 31-unit mixed-need scheme (made up of bungalows, apartments and detached/ semi-detached family houses) for Grove Community Housing Association in Belfast.

A 10-home scheme targeting Passivhaus certification on Rathlin Island for the Rural Housing Association is nearing completion. Passivhaus was adopted for the scheme in response to overwhelming resident demand during the initial consultation.

For the Sunningdale Gardens project, procuring the team under the overarching Pagabo procurement framework worked well, but the limited local MMC and Passivhaus expertise meant that there was a short selection list to work from. For example, there was only one company able to certify Passivhaus projects on the island of Ireland at the time of the project’s completion. 

However, the Passivhaus supply chain in Northern Ireland is growing by the day. Suppliers are seeing unprecedented demand for lower carbon insulation and airtightness products to help meet Passivhaus requirements in both new build and retrofit.  

Upskilling is no longer an obstacle. Passivhaus training is now free across the island of Ireland, including courses to become a certified Passivhaus tradesperson or designer, thanks to the Green Accelerator Skills Programme (GRASP).

“Sunningdale Gardens, the Northern Ireland Housing Executive’s first directly delivered new build housing project in 25 years, is the first MMC Passivhaus-certified social housing project delivered in Northern Ireland”

Social housing providers we have spoken to in Northern Ireland say they would be keen to adopt Passivhaus further, if there was less financial uncertainty. There are calls for the Housing Association Grant from the Department of Communities to enable higher energy performance, reflecting the many health and fuel poverty benefits of Passivhaus.

Passivhaus social housing would also help address Northern Ireland Executive’s new Housing Supply Strategy 2024-2039, and help support delivery of its draft anti-poverty strategy. 

The current surge of large-scale Passivhaus projects in Northern Ireland can only be for the good, in terms of helping upskill NI’s construction industry. Each project will deliver its own multiplier effect.

As Andrew Haley, chairperson of the Ministerial Advisory Group (MAG) for Architecture and the Built Environment in Northern Ireland, has said: “Passivhaus is rightly drawing the attention of developers, social housing, executive departments and local authorities, as well as policymakers. It offers huge opportunities for Northern Ireland, in terms of tackling fuel poverty and achieving climate goals.”

Ann-Marie Fallon, co-director, UK Passivhaus Trust