Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
THE SIMON COMMUNITY says it recorded an 88 per cent increase in the number of people bedding down in Dublin’s inner city area between July and September this year, compared the the same period in 2012.
There was also a 66 per cent increase in numbers sleeping rough in the area between Jervis Street, Amien Street and Harcourt Street in the first six months of 2013, compared to last year.
Dublin Simon Community CEO Sam McGuinness has described the increase as “frightening”, and said the organisation was “really concerned at these trends across this narrow catchment area”. The early morning street counts carried out by the charity take place twice a week at 6am.
85 people were found to be sleeping rough in the inner city on one night earlier this month — the highest figure since the charity began keeping a record of the numbers.
The homeless organisation warned that the Government’s plan to end long term homelessness by 2016 was “in serious jeopardy” as it launched its annual review this morning.
McGuinness said that services in the area were being stretched more than ever at a time when demand was at crisis level.
“The homeless sector has already absorbed massive reductions and we are expecting further cuts,” McGuinness said.
“This will mean that since 2008, we have experienced severe decreases, making it extremely challenging to tackle the alarming rise in demand for housing and support services for the most vulnerable in our society.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
The problem is a lot deeper than just lack of houses. It’s mainly mental health, or addiction. It’s easy to bash the services, but the poor people who are homeless are extremely difficult to engage with.
So do you think there has been an 88% rise in addicts and acute mental health problems suffered by Dubliners in the past 12 months? The point you are making is relevant to the long term homeless, the point in the article is such a marked rise in homelessness in such a short period of time is a worrying trend, and I would tend to agree.
With the thousands of empty apartments and complexes in Dublin this should not be happening.
Disgraceful that 88 people have to sleep rough in the capital.
@ Stephen – it is funding that is needed to be put into existing homeless services so they can maintain their services instead of year on year cuts and project workers being replaced by lower grades when they leave.
Catch those bankers and seanie fingers and all that crowd and slap a tax on them to support these unfortunates . If a bank wants to pay a bonus to there’re CEO and CFO,s they they should reject it and send th money to SVP and like . It’s criminal now what’s happening with bonuses etc etc
Come on government take your fingers out and do something
There is no shortage of homeless shelters in Dublin.
The problem is you have to adhere to their curfew and no Alcohol or drugs policy…
Well to be fair they shouldn’t be allowed to drink and use drugs in these hostels. If they want to sleep rough because they’d rather take drugs it’s their own fault then, probably what got them into trouble in the first place.
There are wet hostels too where people can drink.
Bit of sense there conor! A lot of the homeless people are happy to sleep out in the summer months as it is warmer and saves them money to spend on drink/drugs. Also people suggesting using vacant apartments, I wouldn’t fancy paying my mortgage and living next to homeless people who get the same apartment for nothing.
There actually is a bed shortage. There was a homeless couple I used to talk to when I lived beside the Simon Community. One night when I was on my way home from a night out in town,I found him sleeping in a doorway in Temple Bar (in the snow). I asked him where Rose was and he told me that he had queued with her to make sure she got a bed in a hostel. The hostels do not permit couples to stay together and by the time he got to the other hostels, the beds were full. So he had to sleep outside. It used to break my heart!
There is a shortage of homeless shelter beds.I know this because my mam works in the council giving people emergency accommodation ie hostel beds.she has to turn people away because they run out of beds
Conor, are you implying that there has been an 88% rise in drug addicts and alcoholics in Dublin in the past 12 months and they are the reason for this spike? While undoubtedly many of the long term homeless are addicts, surely such a marked rise in such a short period cannot be down to substance abuse or mental health issues.
No not necessarily but I would bet a large proportion of the people sleeping rough on Dublin’s streets tonight are substance abusers(which is nobody’s fault but there own).
Also considering we have one of the most generous welfare systems in Europe I personally find it hard to believe there are so many genuinely homeless people.
I would usually agree Conor, but why then has the number risen 88% in one year? I would agree that, as you say, “a large proportion of the people sleeping rough on Dublin’s streets tonight are substance abusers”, but I would also contend that these are predominately the long term homeless and not those referenced in this article.
Now, call me naive, but I think a rise of 88% in homeless figures in our capital coinciding with the worst economic issues our country has faced in a generation would indicate that it is economic issues forcing these new people on to the streets, rather than a coincidental massive increase in substance abuse and a rapid decline in the city’s mental health standards.
Mark,
See your point entirely, I wasn’t referring to single apartments rather entire complexes, or in fact houses corporation, such as those up by Northside Shopping Centre.
exactly Silent Majority. Lets all blame the drugs and alcohol, solve that and homeless people no more. Not true. Theres other issues at play here, economic, support, massive demand for rental accomodation and simply not enough to go around, let alone jobs ffs. Its plain to be seen.
Connor, go and sleep in the street tonight .. and tell me tomorrow whether a few drinks takes the edge off it.
There are a multitude of reasons people become homeless, including mental illness and mental illnesses are often a result of the trauma of having to live on the street.
Obviously, not everyone is entitled to social welfare and not everyone on the street has the wherewithal to help themselves in this regard.
Your attitude and understanding is simplistic at the least and commenting that “it is their own fault” is both ignorant and offensive.
There are a vast amount of people who are only 2 pay checks from being homeless, quite possibly including yourself.
If, God forbid, a bereavement or a loss of job or a relationship breakdown or a mental illness or an accident leaves you homeless, I would pray that you are presented with a more charitable attitude than you have displayed on this thread.
I used to live in the apartments right beside the Simon Community on Ushers Island and there were a massive number of homeless women also. This was in the mid to late 90′s but I was surprised by the amount of homeless women. I think there will always be more homeless men than women though. We will always have a homeless problem because the state doesnt care about these people. If they weren’t bothered to solve the problem during the Celtic Tiger then they are hardly going to do it now.
There are loads of empty buildings owned by the government like the old motor tax office beside the four courts that could be easily converted into homeless hostels. Unfortunately the government couldn’t care less about the people living on the streets. Their only concern is making sure the Irish tax payer bails out all their “buddies” in Europe and to hell with the social consequences the country is left with.
and also future children to help continue paying the taxes. seems a young single person with no kids, deemed of no use anymore with no future is of simply no use, so need to support.
Office blocks aren’t that easy to convert and such conversions are expensive although not impossible.
I don’t believe that such conversions are necessary. Look how many empty apartments are empty, including a number of corporation owned.
All that’s needed is a few big rooms, buy 100 camping cots. I know that’s simplistic as there is overhead costs and security etc but that’s the basic need at the end of it all. Could probably pay 8 of those homeless people to maintain the place or get the Simon community involved. It won’t solve the problem but it will reduce the number sleeping on the streets simply because they have nowhere to go.
Scanners,
Yes that would provide a short term solution.
There could even be partition walls (plywood or similar) to give an element of privacy.
Berths could be allocated, with possible soup kitchen type catering (example Capuchin mission, Salvation Army) with social workers helping to assist with job/accommodation seeking.
Possibly the newly homeless could assist in running things.
This next will probably bring lots of red thumbs and cries of discrimination, which it is,
Accommodation could be allocated differently for those with drug, mental, alcohol problems different to those who have through bad luck, job losses become homeless.
Those in the “problem groups” could have a higher ratio of social workers present, including possibly medical volunteers eg Red Cross, St, Johns. With additional security.
What about former barrack accommodation? Although I don’t know if there is any available, if so the barrack blocks could be used to accommodate, complete with the sort of consideration I mention above.
Barracks have all the facilities necessary for relatively large numbers.
How feasible this last is don’t know, but it might be worth looking at.
You will find that 90% of the homeless people on the streets have some sort of mental illness. The issue here is to find way’s of intervening before it gets to the point of homelessness. If you looked at how under funded the mental health services are you would understand.
Why is it not mentioned even once that the vast majority of these homeless people are males? If it were females the article would become a gynocentric article about the suffering of females. But because its males it remains nuetral. Typical.
i know, scared of the truth.
There are more issues for homeless women. Risk of rape, being pregnant, sanitary issues etc.
Tommy,there was a South African homeless man raped here about 2 years ago,there was a story about it in the Herald. And apparently,most male victims of rape don’t report it because they feel too ashamed. And so many are beaten up by drunken fools on their way home that I would feel that men are at most risk.
Andrea, I’m not saying men aren’t at risk but as a woman, can you imagine how difficult it would be during a normal monthly cycle?
You cannot make a comment like that without actually having experienced homelessness. It’s an awful situation to be for a man or a woman, you are the lowest of the low in society, and you exist from one minute to the next. You are a a nobody. But the only person to get themselves out of the dark hole us the person themselves, … If they can’t then unfortunately they very often feel that their life is not worth living anymore.
Homeless men are much more likely to have the sh/t beaten out of them for fun by passers-by
Can you imagine Tommy how difficult it is every single day for anyone homeless? We all need a toilet.
very true Chuck, not even homeless men, any man going out for the night is wide open for a challenging brawl in the bar by some w@/\/k3r
Dublin is flooded with alcoholics and junkies! it’s a huge social problem that you can’t end with housing
True, it’s the causes of homelessness that needs to be addressed before the situation can get better.
well yes Al that is true, but they aren’t all homeless either, and many who became homeless through no fault of their own ‘only then turned’ to drugs etc to block out the hopelessness. It’s a mixed population, all with different stories. I certainly don’t believe and refuse to accept that all homeless people are in that situation because of what they abuse. Mental health issues, yes of course theres that too, how in gods name can they work out forms to filled in, getting themselves cleaned etc, some are capable, some aren’t. There needs to be more housing for these people, with social workers checking on them. Living independently helps ones mental well being. i know the RA caps were raised a bit over the past year (i noticed when that happened, the l/lords raised theirs, amusing that). Take a single person, no abuse issues, decent, can’t find a place to rent within that cap, its not accepted by 80% (big big problem there), where do they go??? So that i hope explains, they aren’t all junkies.
i certainly wouldn’t share with strangers again, tbh theres lot that goes with that, that would drive anyone into mental health care. Many of the homeless are harmless, but sad, depressed, who wouldn’t be? Many not homeless can be a nightmare! A person with mental health issues can’t live with people like that, they need to live independently or if anything with good caring, respectable people, lucky to get tbh.
Shouldn’t happen in this day and age,we call ourselves a developed country but still people roam the streets
There is a rise throughout the country.
Unfortunately homelessness is not solved as easily as providing extra bed spaces.
Service users frequently have serious alcohol, drug or poly drug addictions as well as a significant percentage having various degrees of mental health issues and sometimes co morbidity.
These issues need to be addressed before the person can consider moving to live independently.
i think living independently would be better for their well being than placing them in with strangers no? i mean, they’re not family, they’re not going to care or be responsible for them, it would be hard for all tenants including the person trying to cope. It wouldn’t be fair at all.
http://www.hail.ie, thats the kind of forward, correct thinking model i’m talking about.
yes i see what you mean there, sorry i thought you meant ‘sharing’ which is not ideal, yes the support and help to get off drugs would need to be addressed but many aren’t that way, they just need a home, peace.
Hail are a fantastic service and when someone can get a place with them I have seen first hand how with individual tailored support the person comes on in leaps and bounds. Unfortunately there are enough Hail placements and a lot of people who are suitable for hail accommodation are left to try and find private rented accommodation or become absorbed into homeless services and the longer they linger with homeless services the more difficult it is for them to move on from there.
All my life I have seen people homeless on our streets. It’s my worst nightmare that I would find myself without a home. I think shelter should be a basic for society as it is a human need. It still bothers me that housing is seen as a profit centre by the state and many
While no one should ever have to live on the streets. More questions need to be asked as to why they are on the streets.
Drugs, Alcohol and just being anti social or is it they lost their job and have , couldn’t pay rent and forced out onto the street or is it they hopped on the boat hoping they’d get something but it never transpired.
Saying a 88% increase is one thing but not questioning the circumstances in another.
Using percentages like this will not enhance the reputation of Simon who do great work without the theatrics of the other charities.
Simon tend to help men especially those just out of prison or other institutions. Focus Ireland tend to help mainly families.
I think housing authorities also tend to help mainly families and single mothers as a priority? which is why you’ve more homeless single males. Not enough 1 bed homes would be a reason too? i still think you’ll have more homeless males no matter, bottom of the list always. Can we see the reasons why highlighted or is that a touchy subject?
The law requires that local authorities house/provide accommodation for families which also includes single mothers, there is no such requirement by law, to assist single males or females or married couples without children.
Not saying this is right.
Do wonder myself at the amount of homeless when there are numerous apartments empty, a number of which are corporation.
Lorelei the reality is that when “families” are mentioned in any social welfare/housing context it equates to single mothers.
That’s the warm weather for ya… I nearly felt like sleeping out in it myself…
Didn’t I say single mothers, the main purpose of the law is to ensure children aren’t sleeping/living on the street.
or single women it seems. The law requires that local authorities house/provide accommodation for everyone, but its based in points, priority, they say genders aren’t discriminated against but i don’t believe that. I also don’t believe the waiting lists are strict, i’ve seen Irish people come back from UK and get housing with 3 years in areas of high demand. I think its persistence, keep hassling them, keep going to allocations and demanding, asking, make oneself known. Easy option to make you go away is find you housing. Tbh if i was a single woman now, i’d get myself pregnant to get a house on the massive rent cap they get. Makes sense, the incentive.
That’s for corporation housing 8-12 year waiting not for emergency housing
This is unforgivable. We have spent over a decade building what turned out to be largely unnecessary houses and apartments all over the country, with large numbers of apartment blocks sitting unoccupied and ghost estates peppering the nation, yet we are witnessing rising homelessness. All this is being done to protect what people must be beginning to realise is an archaic monetary system that is no longer fit for purpose in the technological age. People cannot be sacrificed to save a system that is supposedly designed in the best interests of the people. When a system no longer serves us well, then the system must be sacrificed. Whatever needs to be done, and whatever bs red tape needs to be cut to get a roof over people’s heads, just do it. We have the homes, we have the homeless, this isn’t a particularly complex equation!
Seeing loads around town, feel really sorry for them.
Every few houses or apartments you pass are empty,very sad to see someone sleeping rough,no one should have to do it,especially our own.
Nobody has to sleep rough, the benefits umbrella is there for all, if they want to come under.
Wrong Jazz, some can’t afford to rent, others won’t be given places by landlords. Check the number of to let ads requiring references, previous landlord, employer. Not accepting rent sy
Upplement/allowance. There are very few homeless who are happy to be that way, why are the hostels turning people away at night due to being full? Obviously those being turned away want a bed and roof over their heads for the night.
True Steve, though references etc should be enough but to refuse RA outright on daft.ie should not be allowed. Many are decent honest people, out of work and had their rent caps reduced. They would have references, landlord and work refs etc. I’ve lived with professionals, and tbh i’ve also had a hard time trying to get money off them to pay bills, help clean etc. Question everything and will try every trick in the book not to pay, even try to convince you they already paid you. Unreal. Some people need to live independently, otherwise ‘violence’ ensues when responsibilities arent shared. You develop a low tolerance for bs.
not to mention say Dublin City, its not very big, yet the population growth? nuff said really, thats extra pressure and rooms taken up. theres not enough to go around, let alone jobs but thats another debate.
This ain’t Sao Paulo, others seem to think this is a massive country there for the taking but there comes to a point when enough is enough, we just can’t sustain it. Keeping going though and collapse it for everyone, including yourselves.
Well said Steve, I’m having great difficulty finding a house/getting a landlord to accept rent allowance. It’s like you have a contagious disease or something. They won’t even meet me
Should make homeless sleeping on the street a criminal offence as they have in other countries. Cleans the street up straight away , stops begging and crime reduces aswell. Not popular but works
John I’m sure many homeless people would welcome a night in jail. Warm bed, three meals a day, tv, internet, gym and education.
@ Tommy C – you’ve obviously never seen Cork Prison or Mountjoy men’s prison.
Murder is a criminal offence but that hasn’t gone away at any point in history, no matter what the sanctions are.
try sleeping beside my misses…thatll give u a rough night sleep and its frightening
It was fairly rough alright.
I thought we were out of ression? Who ever said that is away with the fairys n this is prof that we are a long way from getting out.
There were homeless people at the height of the Celtic Tiger economy too.
Hi Malcolm Lackey, you obviously care very much about my comments on The Journal if you took the time to send me an insulting message. At least have the balls to allow a reply you wimpish coward.
I feel that these people should be helped by each service they need. Addiction, mental health and health etc… But i realy believe that we should be helping our own people first. People of other countries should be offered treatment and the chance to go home…
Depaul Ireland also help homeless people, they are responsible for opening the first wet shelter in Ireland 2003.
have your say