Ireland Faces Unprecedented Child Homelessness as Figures Surpass 4,000 in Emergency Accommodation
Official data reveals that, for the first time, the number of children in emergency accommodation in Ireland has exceeded 4,000, reaching a total of 4,105 out of a monthly tally of 13,514 individuals in November. This marks a 17% increase from November 2022, with 335 more people experiencing homelessness compared to the previous month. The report also highlights 2,000 families recorded as homeless, including 1,134 single-parent families.
Charities are calling on the government to address the alarming rates of homelessness. Focus Ireland’s CEO, Pat Dennigan, emphasised the urgency for a new approach in 2024, focusing on those who have experienced prolonged homelessness. He urged the government to allocate more social housing to individuals facing extended homelessness, freeing up emergency accommodation for asylum seekers and Ukrainian refugees.
Wayne Stanley, the executive director of the Simon Communities of Ireland, described the figures as a “preventable trauma,” emphasising the need for the government to collaborate with local authorities to provide secure, affordable homes and increase the delivery of social housing.
Cian O’Callaghan, the Social Democrats housing spokesman, criticised the government’s response to the housing crisis, noting a 55% increase in people living in emergency homeless accommodation and child homelessness since Darragh O’Brien became Minister for Housing almost four years ago. O’Callaghan expressed concern about the government’s apparent paralysis in dealing with the crisis, suggesting that its final year in office would be marred by unprecedented levels of child homelessness and a generation locked out of home ownership.
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