Cairn Homes

Ireland is witnessing a rising population and as in the UK, there is a chronic shortage of homes to buy or rent, especially in the Dublin region where Cairn is the largest homebuilder in this market.

Irish government initiatives, such as “Help-to-Buy” and the “Shared Equity” schemes, combined with high levels of excess savings in a buoyant economy and low levels of unemployment all contribute to strong demand for housing. Therefore, Cairn’s opportunity for growth is significant. 

The provision of housing meets an important societal need and the company is at the forefront of sustainable construction. It publishes a Climate Transition Plan and is building properties which are energy-efficient up to the extremely high PassivHaus Institut standard.

Cairn is well-placed to remain an important part of the solution to Ireland’s housing problem. 

Whilst the company implements voluntary biodiversity net-gain and takes climate-related risks into account when developing new sites, its developments result in substantial environmental impacts.

These include land transformation and habitat disruption, and a construction process that still involves raw material consumption and energy-related emissions. Although we consider Cairn Homes to be a leader in its industry, these issues are still risks that the business needs to manage.

The company’s operations carry a number of risks related to labour and human rights. Construction work is physically demanding and carries a high risk of injury or even fatality. 

The construction sector, both directly and through material procurement, is vulnerable to modern slavery. Despite efforts to improve transparency, managing and auditing supply chains which include raw materials remains difficult.