Share this article:
Members may wish to note the formal launch of the Home Performance Pathway (HPP) by the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC).
The launch took place on 19 March 2026 at the Custom House with the Minister for Housing, James Browne T.D. The initiative was developed through the support of Construct Innovate and in collaboration with a range of industry and financial stakeholders, including CIF, AIB, Bank of Ireland, Home Building Finance Ireland (HBFI), the Irish Home Builders Association (IHBA), and others.
The HPP has been designed as a simplified sustainability certification pathway specifically targeted at SME homebuilders, providing a more proportionate and accessible route into sustainable housing certification and green finance mechanisms. The certification acts as an entry-level pathway to the more comprehensive Home Performance Index (HPI) certification framework, which is already widely adopted across larger residential developments in Ireland.
A central objective of the initiative is to enable SME developers to qualify for lower-cost green development finance, while also building internal capability in areas such as energy efficiency, water efficiency, biodiversity, indoor air quality, summer comfort and broader sustainability performance. The pathway has been structured around a practical three-step progression model, recognising the differing resource and technical capacity challenges faced by smaller builders.
The launch reflects the increasing integration of sustainability considerations into housing finance, procurement and residential development policy. It is also notable in the context of Ireland’s wider housing and climate objectives, including targets to deliver 300,000 homes by 2030 while reducing national emissions by 51% over the same period. CIF participated in the launch event and is supporting industry engagement with the initiative as part of broader efforts to ensure SME builders remain competitive and aligned with evolving ESG and sustainable finance expectations.