The official X channel of the Department for Communities (DfC) NI, headed by Minister @GordonLyons1. Managed by the DfC Press Office.
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ALT DfC graphic with a group picture of Minister Lyons and stakeholders at an oil truck, the purple DfC logo, blue text that says, “Home Heating Oil Support Scheme”, and white text that reads, “Home Heating Oil Support Scheme: How it works. Everything you need to know about the £36.4 million support scheme for oil heating households across Northern Ireland.”
ALT A purple DfC graphic featuring the purple DfC logo, blue text that says, “Home Heating Oil Support Scheme”, a graphic of a house and white text that reads, “What is the scheme and who is it for? A support scheme delivered by the Department, to help with the rising costs of home heating oil. A £100 digital pre-paid card will be issued to up to 340,000 eligible households.”
ALT A purple DfC graphic featuring the purple DfC logo, blue text that says, “Home Heating Oil Support Scheme”, a graphic of a laptop and white text that reads, “How can I apply for the scheme? Online at nidirect.gov.uk/oil-support-scheme. Applications are open until 31 March 2027.”
ALT A purple DfC graphic featuring the purple DfC logo, blue text that says, “Home Heating Oil Support Scheme”, a graphic of a house and people and white text that reads, “More than one person living in my household may qualify, who should apply? Anyone can apply, however a digital pre-paid card will only be awarded to the first eligible person applying from any individual address.”
ALT A purple DfC graphic featuring the purple DfC logo, blue text that says, “Home Heating Oil Support Scheme”, a graphic of a mobile phone and white text that reads, “How will I receive my digital pre-paid card? Successful applicants will receive a clickable unique hyperlink by email or text message to activate the £100 digital pre-paid card. A unique hyperlink and a QR code will be sent by letter to applicants who do not have an email or smartphone. You will have three months to activate your pre-paid card.”
ALT A purple DfC graphic featuring the purple DfC logo, blue text that says, “Home Heating Oil Support Scheme”, a graphic of an arrow with 10 days, and white text that reads, “How long will the decision take after submitting my application? We aim to send you a decision notification within 10 days of having received your application or any required supporting evidence. Check your junk email if it has been longer than 10 days before contacting the Oil Support Scheme team.”
ALT A purple DfC graphic featuring the purple DfC logo, blue text that says, “Home Heating Oil Support Scheme”, a graphic of an oil tank and white text that reads, “How do I use my digital pre-paid card? Once you have activated your unique hyperlink this will generate the digital pre-paid card which you can use to purchase home heating oil with a supplier in Northern Ireland.”
ALT A purple DfC graphic featuring the purple DfC logo, blue text that says, “Home Heating Oil Support Scheme”, a graphic of a person thinking and white text that reads, “Have a specific question? View the detailed FAQs at communities-ni.gov.uk/oil-support-scheme.”
ALT DfC River Notice graphic featuring a background of Belfast’s River Lagan, with white text on a purple rectangle that reads: “River Notice. Saturday 31 October 2026. Notice is hereby given that Belfast Rowing Club have been given approval to hold a Autumn Head of the River Races event from 0900hrs to 1445hrs on 31/10/2026. The event will take place between Abercorn Basin to Belfast Rowing Club. River users are asked to exercise due caution around the event and give the participants a wide berth where possible. The River Warden’s boat will be on duty to ensure that river users comply with the River Lagan Tidal Navigation and General Bye-Laws (NI) 2007 applicable to this Notice.”
ALT A graphic featuring an image of a stack of paper, the white DfC logo and white text that reads, "Report published. Outcome of the public consultation on the draft Local Government (Cremation) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2024."
ALT A graphic featuring Minister Lyons signing the Commencement Order for the Sign Language (Northern Ireland) Act 2026, the purple DfC logo, a white graphic of a hand holding paper and white text that reads, “Act Analysis. 3 things you need to know about the Sign Language Act (Northern Ireland) 2026.”
ALT A graphic featuring Minister Lyons signing the Commencement Order for the Sign Language (Northern Ireland) Act 2026, the purple DfC logo, and white text that reads, “BSL and ISL are now recognised under law. The landmark Act legally recognises the use and importance of British Sign Language (BSL) and Irish Sign Language (ISL) and strengthens support for Deaf people across Northern Ireland.”
ALT A graphic featuring a Jordanstown School pupil, the white DfC logo, and white text that reads, “Accessible services and information. Public bodies and government departments will: * Promote and facilitate BSL and ISL * Improve accessibility to their information and services * Support greater inclusion of Deaf sign language users in daily life.”
ALT A graphic featuring Minister Lyons and pupil’s from Jordanstown School, the purple DfC logo, and white text that reads, “Supporting the use of sign language. The Act supports the learning and use of sign language, particularly for deaf children and their families, recognising the life-changing importance of early access to language.”
ALT A graphic featuring art from Jordanstown School, the white DfC logo, and white text that reads, “Next steps… * Implementation * Engagement with the Deaf community * Guidance to support public bodies in meeting their new responsibilities.”
ALT A picture of a person typing on their laptop with the white DfC logo and white text that reads, “Respond today. The second review of the Licensing and Registration of Clubs (Amendment) Act (NI) 2021 closes on 9 November 2026.”
ALT A group photo featuring (L-R), Sean Hanna, Chief Service Officer NOW Group, Maeve Monaghan, CEO NOW Group, Minister Lyons and Maria McAllister, Board Member.
ALT A group photo featuring Minister Lyons smiling and taking part in a planning activity.
ALT A three shot featuring Sean Hanna, Chief Service Officer NOW Group, Maeve Monaghan, CEO NOW Group and Minister Lyons.
ALT DfC River Notice graphic featuring a background of Belfast’s River Lagan, with white text on a purple rectangle that reads: “River Notice. Tuesday 27 October 2026. Notice is hereby given that the River Lagan between the Lagan Weir and the Stranmillis Weir will be unsafe for navigation at the following times: 0300 hrs - 1000 hrs on Tuesday 27 October 2026. The River Lagan will be fully lowered at these times to provide freshwater storage during a forecast storm surge period. River users are advised not to be on the river during these periods as the river level will fall substantially below the normal minimum impoundment level.”
