Dublin Simon Responds to May 2022 Homeless Report
Dublin Simon Community is gravely concerned by the cataclysm caused by the rising number of people entering homelessness each month. Behind the figures are thousands of people experiencing unimaginable stress and trauma caused by spending lengthy periods in the uncertainty of emergency accommodation. This in turn creates a further pressure within services working to support the physical and mental health of this vulnerable group.
Dublin Simon has recently seen a huge growth in the number of women presenting as homeless, and this month’s official figures show a 30% growth in the number of adult females in emergency accommodation in Dublin in the last 12 months.
Becoming homeless is a traumatic event in its own right, and women in homelessness have very specific needs relating to physical and mental health and trauma informed care. Finding suitable female emergency accommodation is particularly challenging and there have been a number of cases recently where suitable beds were simply not available.
Total figures for those in emergency accommodation in Dublin in May 2022 now stands at 7,432 up from 7,200 in April 2022. Of those,1,821 are female, 3,352 are male and 2,259 are children.
Ciarán King, Outreach manager, said: “As the numbers continue to rise there is a clear crisis in finding suitable emergency accommodation, one of our primary concerns is ensuring the safety of women who we are encountering on the streets. Many people that we work with have a range of complex needs and are very vulnerable. It is essential that we have access to safe and secure emergency accommodation for this group and adequate emergency places for all those who require it.”
