The number of homeless people has increased again, to 17,308 – a 12.5 per cent increase in a year and 196 more than a month previously.
The data, published on Friday by the Department of Housing, show during the week of February 16th to 22nd, there were 11,851 adults and 5,457 children in emergency accommodation. The children are in 2,609 families.
This does not include people who are sofa-surfing, sharing overcrowded homes, in domestic violence refuges, rough-sleeping or stuck in direct provision centres despite having legal status to remain and unable to access housing.
In terms of citizenship, just under half (49.7 per cent) were from Ireland, 19.5 per cent were from the EEA or the UK, with 30.8 per cent from outside the EEA.
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In Dublin, where the crisis is most acute, there were 8,296 adults in homeless accommodation and 4,021 children.
Pat Dennigan, chief executive of Focus Ireland said: “It is heartbreaking to see homelessness stuck at a record level and to know that thousands of children are growing up without the security of a home. Homelessness is not a foregone conclusion. With the right policies we can turn this around.”
David Carroll, chief executive of Depaul, said the figures were a “stark reminder that the crisis in Ireland is not only deepening, but becoming more entrenched”.
“There is a critical need now for the imminently planned Government homeless prevention framework to be introduced and adequately resourced.
“Today’s figures are confirming what we are already seeing every day across our services – more people, more families, and more children being pushed into homelessness.
“We believe the private rental market is one of the keys to the homelessness prevention solution. When we look at the fallout we are seeing from the recently introduced rental legislation there is a need to make sure that small landlords in particular are supported to remain in the market.”
The National Youth Council of Ireland (NYCI) said it was “unacceptable” that those aged 18 to 24 years accounted for 17 per cent of adults emergency accommodation.
“These figures represent a profound failure to protect young people at a critical stage in their lives. No young person should be forced into homelessness because they cannot afford rent or access the supports they need,” said Grace McManus, campaigns manager with the council.
Catherine Kenny, chief executive of Dublin Simon, said the numbers were “the last figures before the new tenancy rules came into effect, and they come at a moment of real concern across the sector”.
“We are seeing evidence of multiple catalysts converging to create pressure: rising notices of termination, affordability challenges, and now new legislation changes – all meeting a system that is already operating at its limits. The risk is that more people will be pushed into homelessness with fewer pathways out.”
Sinn Féin spokesman on housing, Eoin Ó Broin, predicted homelessness would “rise even more in the coming months” due to changes in rules governing the private rented market and ongoing funding shortfalls in the tenant-in-situ scheme.
“We need an emergency ban on no-fault evictions now and we need an emergency package of measures to both prevent homelessness and get people out of emergency accommodation more quickly. There are solutions.
“This crisis can be tackled. The question is whether the Government has the political will to do what is needed,” he said.
Social Democrats housing spokesman Rory Hearne called for a referendum to include a right to housing in the Constitution.
“[This] would put an obligation on the Irish State and the Government to ensure that all citizens have access to a decent, secure, affordable home.”
“A right to housing is essential if we are to tackle this social and economic catastrophe, but, crucially, the Government must also urgently take proactive measures to increase supply and affordability,” he said.
