By Alex Greaney
Chief Executive Daniel McLoughlin has given a full report on homelessness in South Dublin Couty Council. It finds that, at the end of May 2022, 494 households, comprising a total of 612 adults and 427 children were registered as homeless with this Council. The household breakdown was as follows:
There are three family hubs are in operation in South Dublin County at present:
- High Street Family Hub (Abberley): a privately managed facility with 58 rooms (including 9 large family rooms) which is currently fully occupied with 54 households
- Firhouse Family Hub: managed by Respond Housing with 20 rooms and currently fully occupied by 20 households.
- Springfield Family Hub: also managed by Respond Housing and which is also fully occupied accommodating 12 households in twelve family rooms.
The report highlights that family hubs are not intended as long-term accommodation solutions, but are an important response for households that become homeless and have no alternative other than self-accommodation in hotels and B&Bs. Hubs are intended to provide short-term, but more stable and appropriate accommodation, that includes play space, cooking & laundry facilities and communal recreation space. This relative stability should allow families to pursue longer term private rented accommodation through HAP support, with the assistance of on-site key workers, or social housing tenancies.
As families progress from family hubs to HAP or social housing, places in the hubs are then offered to other homeless families and there are currently approximately 170 families registered as homeless with the Council, of which 44 are awaiting family hub accommodation.
For the period January to May 2022, 26 homeless households were allocated permanent social housing tenancies with the Council, or an AHB in addition to households who exited emergency accommodation with the support of Homeless HAP tenancies.
The report states: “Increasing housing supply is critical to meeting current housing need, including for homeless households, and the Council’s Housing Delivery Action Plan 2022-2026, which will be published shortly following its approval by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, outlines our approach to meeting the social housing delivery targets set for the Council under the national housing plan, Housing for All.”
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