11,500 homeless as figure hits record level for fifth straight month
It is the fifth consecutive month that homeless figures have reached a record high, despite a temporary eviction ban being in place.
There are 11,542 people in homeless accommodation across Ireland, marking another new record.
It is the fifth consecutive month that homeless figures have reached a record high, despite a temporary eviction ban being in place.
The Homeless Report for November 2022 was issued by the Department of Housing on Friday and showed that 8,048 adults and 3,494 children needed beds last month. 1,616 were families while 1,371 were young people aged 18 to 24.
Dublin is responsible for 5,655 of the adults needing homeless accommodation, with the majority (3,011) being aged between 25 and 44.
Some 513 adults require homeless accommodation in Cork, with 82 in Kerry.
Together, Cork and Kerry make up for 8% of the total number of homeless people in Ireland.
In the last 12 months, the number of homeless people has jumped from 9,099 people to 11,542.
The Department’s official homelessness statistics are published on a monthly basis and refer to the number of homeless persons accommodated in emergency accommodation funded and overseen by housing authorities during a specific count week, typically the last full week of the month.
Focus Ireland CEO Pat Dennigan said: “While we warmly welcome the words of commitment towards addressing the homeless crisis from both the Minister of Housing, Darragh O’Brien and new Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, we need to see those words turned into urgent action."
He added: “The number of people who have been homeless for more for than six months is increasing and in Dublin there are now 178 families and 574 single people who have been in homeless accommodation for over two years. This is unacceptable. It’s important to remember that when we discuss these figures we are talking about human beings struggling every day and the trauma of long-term homelessness can leave a lasting trauma long after they finally find a home.”
Dublin Simon Community CEO Catherine Kenny said homelessness is breaking records for the wrong reasons.
"Homelessness is harmful, and the damage it wreaks is irreparable. Research commissioned by the Dublin Region Homeless Executive has shown that mortality rates are 3 to 10 times higher for women experiencing homelessness, and 6 to 10 times higher for men experiencing homelessness."
Across homeless services, homeless individuals aged 55 and over are considered to be elderly due to their diminished standard of health, physically presenting as ten to twenty years older than their actual age.
"This desperate situation cannot become the status quo. We must offer fresh hope and the prospect of a brighter future for Ireland’s homeless. The time for radical action is now.”
Meanwhile, Simon Communities has said 2023 needs to be "a year of delivery for those at the sharpest end of the ongoing housing crisis or we will see the unthinkable surpassed and redefined each month".
"In the face of the homelessness crisis, the Government took the important step of bringing in the moratorium on evictions," said Simon Communities of Ireland Executive Director Wayne Stanley.
"Now we need to see momentum on the provision of secure affordable accommodation to those in homelessness in the coming weeks and throughout 2023. Otherwise, we are facing into ongoing extensions and renewals of the eviction ban and that’s not a long-term solution."
Mr Stanley said more innovation in housing provision is needed in 2023.
"We welcome the focus on rapid build homes and will be calling on Government to ensure that innovation in this area is driven forward. We would also highlight again the need for the insertion of a right to housing in our constitution."
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