Tragically more and more people are becoming homeless or at risk of homelessness in Ireland. Charities such as the Simon Communities are increasingly finding themselves at breaking point. The prolonged economic crisis means more of us have little or no safety net to protect us from misfortune.
Last year, an average of 1,378 people stayed in emergency accommodation every night in the Dublin region alone. While organisations such as the Simon Communities continue to offer support to those at risk, increased demand on services and sustained cuts to government funding mean they are being stretched to the very limit.
To coincide with Simon week (September 30 – October 6) we decided to try to get an understanding of the homelessness problem on ‘The Last Word’.
On Tuesday, Mike Mackey from Galway, who received help from Simon, told Matt his remarkable story:
On Wednesday, Matt was joined in studio by Niamh Randall, Head of Policy and Communications with the Simon Communities, to discuss the extent of the problem across Ireland as well as what can be done to tackle the issue. Dr Sam Tsemberis founder of ‘Pathways to Housing’ also explained how his housing first model, which provides immediate access to permanent supported housing, has succeeded in addressing the homelessness issue in New York:
Thursday's programme: Matt paid a visit to one of Simon’s emergency accommodation shelters in Dublin. Also Jan O'Sullivan, the Minister for Housing and Planning, came into studio to explain the Government’s plan to tackle the issue considering they recently pledged to end long-term homelessness by 2016 using a housing-led approach:
