Numbers accessing emergency accommodation across Ireland continues to rise

THE number of people seeking emergency accommodation across Ireland rose again slightly last month, new figures have confirmed.

The government has published the monthly homelessness report for September, which shows 136 more people were homeless between August and September - an increase of 1.1%.

According to the report, the total number of people accessing emergency accommodation during September was 12,827.  During July, August and September, the most common reason for presenting as homeless was "relationship breakdown/ family circumstance".

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien has also published the Homeless Quarterly Progress Report for the third quarter of the year, which showed that 713 households were prevented from entering emergency accommodation, by way of tenancies being created.

Commenting on the reports, Minister O'Brien said that “those without a home remain the top priority for this government”.

He stated: "As we can see from the monthly report for September, unfortunately, there has been a further increase in the numbers of people in emergency accommodation and the reasons for this remain varied and complex.

“However, the situation is very challenging. We know that increasing the supply of new homes, particularly social and affordable homes, is key to tackling homelessness.”

Separately, 23,923 new homes commenced construction in the first nine months of 2023 – an increase of 14.3% on the same period in 2022, which Minister O’Brien says shows “that supply is increasing and we are going in the right direction”.