Girl, 11, was 'too ashamed' to invite friends to homeless hub

Molly McNulty, 11, from Donnycarney, Dublin, at Child Talks: 'I was homeless twice and I've lived in nine different places. Picture: Maxwell’s 

An 11-year-old girl has told an online event to mark World Children's Day that the only time she didn't feel embarrassed about being homeless was when she wore a mask at Halloween.

Molly McNulty was the youngest of seven children to take part in this year's Child Talks at Leinster House.

The event is an opportunity for children around the country to share their experiences on issues important to them. The theme of this year’s Child Talks was, "If I were Taoiseach for a day".

Molly said if she had the top job in government, she would ensure "housing for all".

The event was hosted by the Ombudsman for Children’s Office and streamed live from Leinster House into classrooms around the country.

Molly told people about her own experience with homelessness.

"I was homeless twice and I've lived in nine different places," she said.

"My journey started when I was four.

"We had just moved into a small one-bedroom flat on Mountjoy Street [in Dublin].

I'll never forget the smell of damp, how dark it was, and how filthy these mattresses were."

Molly and her family were eventually evicted from Mountjoy Street.

She could invite friends over to her new emergency accommodation, but she never did.

"I never invited anybody over because I was too ashamed," she said.

"The only time I didn't feel ashamed leaving the [homeless] hub was at Halloween because I had a mask on."

Also speaking at Child Talks was Cara Darmody, the Tipperary schoolgirl whose campaign for better autism services led to her having a face-to-face meeting with Taoiseach Micheál Martin and an opportunity to address a select Oireachtas committee.

In a passionate speech, she said: "If I was Taoiseach, I would put an immediate end to parents having to pay privately for [autism] services they are entitled to.

"I would also make the HSE accountable for its lack of action."

Cara has two brothers with autism — Neil, aged 10, and John, aged five — and she has been fundraising and campaigning for better services.

She recently raised €40,000 for her local school and Scoil Chormaic Special School.