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HOMELESSNESS IS ON the increase in Dublin, the Simon Community charity has said as it launched its annual report today.
Dublin Simon Community has warned of the “lack of and critical need for permanent accommodation options for people in fear of becoming trapped and institutionalised in homelessness”, and said it has launched a development fund of €5 million to address this challenge.
The charity’s annual report shows that in 2011, 2663 individuals accessed its services, while its rough sleeper team saw around 10 per cent more people than previous years (400 people).
Its emergency accommodation was accessed by 791 people; its housing and support services by 529 people; its residential detox/rehab/aftercare service by 359 people; and its services in Wicklow, Meath and Kildare were accessed by around 400 people.
Health
Dublin Simon Community provides low threshold, 24-hour emergency accommodation for men and women who are homeless in Dublin.
It conducted a health survey in July among 232 people using its services, which found that 83 per cent of respondents had a diagnosed physical health condition while 30 per cent had a diagnosed mental health condition
Accommodation
Sean McGuinness, CEO of the homeless charity, called for all temporary accommodation for homeless people to be ‘fit for purpose’.
We have experienced increasing demands of nearly 2,700 people accessing our services in 2011, which is a significant increase again over the past two years. There are now over 1,500 people in temporary emergency accommodation nightly and between 8-10 new presentations daily across the greater Dublin area. This is of serious concern, with in excess of 40 per cent of people in our services more than 5 years.
According to McGuinness, it’s vital that suitable ‘move on’ housing options are provided to prevent people from being “stacked up” in emergency accommodation.
As part of this Housing-led approach we are committed to the sourcing and acquiring of fit-for-purpose properties across Dublin, Wicklow and Kildare. This effort will be enhanced by offering support to those who move on from homelessness and by providing preventative measures ensuring people do not become homeless at all.
McGuinness said the charity is extremely grateful to people who donate, and that in recognition of its committed donor community and government/local authority scheme, it has launched a development fund of €5 million to address this challenge of long-term homelessness and increase its permanent ‘fit for purpose’ accommodation with immediate effect.
Speaking at the launch, the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Naoise Ó Muirí, said Dublin Simon Community “have a great reputation of helping those on the margins of our society”. He also paid tribute to the hundreds of Simon staff and volunteers.
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Thousands of properties empty all over Ireland and this is still a problem. NAMA step up to the plate,especially on a day like this
Is it that simple? Give a house to anyone who asks for one?
yes its very simple to give a house to a needy famly or person especially when its lying idle.
Call me cynical and jaded but if you start handing out houses to people and no doubt letting them live rent free because they’re poor and giving them money because they’re poor then some people, unscrupulous people, might seek to take take advantage and think “Oh, why should I pay rent? Why should I do anything? I can just trot down and avail myself of a free house.”
And who’d pay for all this?
D onal , I agree with you. This report is shocking. I seem to remember an announcement some time back that NAMA would make housing available. Am I correct ?
On a different , but related , topic NAMA could also make office space available to start-up small business’ as that is their greatest cost. This could be done on a 12 mionth reviw basis , terminating if NAMA gets a purchaser for the offices. More people working, drop in number of homeless.
It is frightful to consider being homeless.
We have had the Celtic Tiger
Gone and now dead in the water.. This problem should have been addressed in the in the good times.. Yet this area of homlessness still exists..
No one is homeless by choice
When are our Goverment going to do something about it instead of cutting the budgets of these charites who really make a difference….
Damocles. OK you are cynical and jaded.
Damocles they would be getting a weekly rent from each house that stands empty????? Why shouldn’t They be rented out??
Exactly Geraldine. Only in Ireland would you have someone begrudge an empty house to someone in need.
But the money for the rents, as these people will most likely be unemployed, will be coming from the tax payer.
And homelessness will continue to increase because the Minister for Social Protection is cutting Rent Allowance on a daily basis forcing these people onto the streets. And in the same breath they say we have not cut social welfare. they have slashed the rent allowance, children’s allowance, Home heating scheme hours, etc etc and the list goes on so please do not tell us you left welfare alone. Social Welfare allowances have been slashed to the extent it is impossible to stay above the poverty line.
It really makes me sad this is such a serious problem. The Simon community and focus Ireland do such fantastic work, hoping to volunteer with them again in October. Really hope the housing situation is addressed soon.
Simon tend to support homeless men especially those just out of prison and they also do the soup run. Focus deals with families and have housed 42 families since march. Their coffee shop is a godsend for homeless or those at risk of becoming homeless.
I agree tommy. It is hard to get a volunteer position with Simon. Focus are brilliant. They let you volunteer for fundraisers for as long or as little time as you like.
Im with Focus 6 years now.
Simon are always looking for volunteers for the soup run.
There’s a very large office building standing idle in Chancery Street which used to be the Motor Tax Office. Can this not be given to Simon/Focus to kit out as a shelter? It’s in an ideal city centre location.
Way I see it Dublin city Corporation or what ever it’s called could lease them for a small amount and rent them out to the people that needs them!!! I was reared in a Corporation house I believe people will gladly pay a small rent rather then pay 100′s in rent allowance
have your say