A WHEELCHAIR USER was found sleeping rough on a beach in Kerry recently.

The middle-aged man was found sleeping in the doorway of the boathouse on Banna beach over the May bank holiday weekend, having spent a number of nights there.

A walker found the man and gave him a tent and food before contacting local councillor Toiréasa Ferris.

Speaking to TheJournal.ie today, Ferris said she informed Kerry County Council and the local authority responded immediately. The man is now staying in emergency accommodation.

The incident was first reported in The Kerryman newspaper.

Ferris said the homeless man was “down on his luck”, adding: “Certain circumstances had happened to him and he was hoping things would improve.”

Ferris said people who are homeless or on the brink of losing their home come to her on a weekly basis, adding that the profile of people who are presenting as homeless has changed in recent years.

Particularly in the last year, we have families coming to us with nowhere to go … people who have lived in rented accommodation for quite some time and the landlords have upped the rent quite substantially.

Ferris said the biggest issue facing people in Kerry is the cost of rental accommodation, which has risen “because supply is much smaller than what it needs to be”.

She added that more social housing is needed.

Separately, it is understood a number of homeless people are currently sleeping rough on the beach in Bray, Co Wicklow.

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