Government’s housing plan must mark ‘radical shift’ in policy, homeless charity says

By Gráinne Ní Aodha, PA

The Government’s new housing and homelessness plan should mark “a radical shift”, a charity chief has said.

The Coalition’s strategy, to be published later this month, comes as more than 16,000 people are homeless and Ireland is set to miss its housing targets.

Focus Ireland said 18,000 people engaged with its services last year, with a 7 per cent increase in the number of children it supported.

Speaking at the launch of its annual report at the Irish Architectural Archive in Dublin, Focus Ireland chief executive Pat Dennigan said people need “bold action, not broken promises”.

He added: “Homelessness is not inevitable, but it is the result of choices made and it can be ended by making different, better choices.”

The new strategy must fully integrate housing and homelessness while acknowledging that homelessness often requires more supports alongside providing a home

The charity’s chairwoman, Katie Burke, said the rate of inflation and underfunded public services is a “key concern” and has become “even more urgent”.

Focus Ireland supported a record 1,209 households out of homelessness last year, a 10 per cent increase on the previous year.

This included 587 families – a 21 per cent rise since 2023.

The charity supported more than 18,000 people nationwide who were either homeless or at risk of losing their home in 2024.

Mr Dennigan said: “Focus Ireland has stressed that the Government’s forthcoming ‘housing and homelessness plan’ – due to be published in late September – must mark a radical shift in both housing and homelessness policy.

“In a recent meeting with Minister for Housing James Browne and senior officials, we emphasised that the new strategy must fully integrate housing and homelessness while acknowledging that homelessness often requires more supports alongside providing a home.”