CEO UPDATE
I’m pleased to bring you our first 2024 quarterly update on the services you and your donations are helping to provide to our clients and community.
We had a very successful December 2023 fundraising season with some key events such as Sing for Simon, Carolathon, the Christmas Eve Busk and our inaugural ‘A Community of Hope’ Art Auction.
The funds we raised are going towards our lifesaving frontline services which continue to work at and beyond capacity to end homelessness for people in Dublin and the surrounding counties.
Speaking of our front-line services, this month marks the 55th anniversary of our important work of making home a reality. While we acknowledge that the wider environment is now even more challenging and complex than ever before, your continuing support allows us to keep up with the times, and to keep up with the rapidly growing demand for services.
READ CATHERINE’S FULL LETTER
There are many ways to support us such as donating, advocating for the work that we do, attending our events, donating to our charity shops, and volunteering.
Whatever your contribution, please know that your continuing support for and feedback on our work is much appreciated.
In our last update I asked you to submit any questions you might have about Dublin Simon Community to me for answering. Thank you for your feedback. We received queries on our events, services, volunteering, and donations and have used your feedback to put together this newsletter as a result.
I hope you enjoy reading our updates from across our services.
− Catherine Kenny
CEO Dublin Simon Community
LATEST HOMELESS FIGURESS
End-of-year figures for 2023 show 13,318 people were in emergency accommodation nationally in December.
With 28% of the population of Ireland, Dublin bears the disproportionate burden of 73% of all homeless individuals in the country. 9,774 people are homeless in the capital, with figures in Dublin close to the national figure from just less than two years ago. These figures do not include those rough sleeping and those on our streets seeking asylum.
The wider environment is more challenging and complex than ever before with high house prices and cost of living pressures, while the supply of social and affordable housing remains critically low for those experiencing homelessness.
Consequently, the lack of move-on for families into homes is the main driver of the increase of the numbers of people experiencing homelessness in Dublin.
As always, our Outreach and emergency teams are working to support all those in need, and the corresponding increased demand for services. An idea of the magnitude of the task in front of them is that nightly they deal with up to 300 people in temporary accommodation or on the streets – a number equating to almost four full double-decker buses.
LEANN’S STORY
Leann Walsh spent years working in the hospitality and security industries, often working weekends and night shifts resulting in a poor work-life balance. Her dream was to move to a 9-5 administrative-based role but with most vacancies requiring two years of experience she found herself stuck.
That’s when Leann found Dublin Simon’s Community Employment (CE) mainstream programme which has been designed to help people who are long-term unemployed (or with other barriers to employment) to get back to work by offering part-time and temporary jobs based in Dublin Simon Community.
As part of the programme, participants receive ongoing support with their job searching skills, CVs, applications and job interviews, along with the opportunity to attend in-house training for new starters and any other training which will help their careers.
After successfully applying, Leann was teamed up with a 1:1 supervisor who placed her in an administrative HR-based role. At the outset, she was introduced to the CE guidelines and the scope of her responsibilities ensuring she felt comfortable and supported in her new post. She also had an individual learning plan tailored to her needs.
For the first time, Leann feels like she is doing what she wants in life and is delighted with her work-life balance. After her CE placement, she hopes to secure a full-time role within the administrative field.
USHER’S ISLAND FACILITY PROGRESS
Dublin Simon Community is scheduled to open the doors of its 100-bed residential treatment and recovery unit at Usher’s Island by the middle of this year. Construction began in 2021 on this first-of-its kind facility, which has been specially designed to care for people experiencing homelessness with associated physical and mental health needs.
The facility will be a game-changer for both the health sector and the homeless community. When fully funded it will save the health system millions of euros by reducing the burden on public hospitals at a time when so many people are on hospital trollies.
While funding is still pending from the Department of Health and the HSE, adequate funding will enable us to recruit staff highly skilled in working with adults experiencing health and addiction issues. It will also enable us to add 50 very much needed short stay, health, and addiction homeless-specific beds to the greater Dublin area.
The facility, and the vital services it will contain, have each been developed in response to gaps in existing service provision which act as barrier to people exiting homelessness. By addressing these issues through specialist services in a carefully constructed environment, we hope to improve the quality of life for our clients and residents and help them close the door on homelessness for good.
UNFAIR CITY
We are always looking for innovative ways to ensure that stories of people experiencing homelessness reach the largest number of supporters as possible.
Last year Dublin Simon Community and BBDO Dublin worked together to bring real homeless stories to local, national and global attention through the medium of short film advertising. Our two films, Last Christmas and UnfAIr City achieved enormous recognition and picked up numerous awards. UnfAIr City is notable on a number of fronts in that it used artificial intelligence to tell its story, is a wholly organic campaign with no advertising spend, and has achieved a phenomenal 24.5 million views to date.
We’d like to take this opportunity to thank BBDO Dublin and all of the other creatives, technical staff and film makers who have given their time and expertise freely to help us reach a global audience with this work.
VOLUNTEERING
A Year of Community Heart
In 2023, the heartbeat of Dublin Simon Community was undeniably the incredible volunteers who dedicated their time and energy to make a lasting impact. Their commitment allowed us to orchestrate successful events such as the Proms at Powerscourt, the annual Home Run, Sing 4 Simon, Carolathon, and the Dublin Simon Busk. The community’s generosity shone through as volunteers initiated activities like bag packs, shopping centre collections, and church gate collections, showcasing once again the unparalleled spirit of our community.
Whether coming as individuals, families, or friend groups, our volunteers, both seasoned and new, have contributed significantly. If you are eager to join this dynamic team, please reach out to us at events@dubsimon.ie; your dedication can make a difference.
School and University Talks: Elevating Fundraising with Education
Schools played a pivotal role in our fundraising efforts this year, with teachers organising fundraisers, schools participating in established events, and students undertaking impactful projects on our behalf. The school community’s unwavering support has been a constant across all our functions.
To expand this invaluable school network, we are seeking volunteers comfortable with delivering school talks. The work involves visiting schools in the region, expressing gratitude to students and providing insights into the incredible work of Dublin Simon Community.
If you or someone you know would excel in this volunteer role, please contact us at events@dubsimon.ie