From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
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The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien TD, has today (30 July, 2021) published the Monthly Homeless Report for June and the Homeless Quarterly Progress Report for the second quarter of 2021.
The Quarterly Progress Report is prepared by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, based on quarterly performance reports submitted by the nine regional lead authorities responsible for the administration of homeless services at local level.
The number of individuals presenting to homeless services and the number of people accessing emergency accommodation continued to decline in the second quarter of 2021, following a trend first established in the fourth quarter of 2019. There were 8,014 individuals accessing emergency accommodation in June 2021, a decrease of 685 individuals (8%) on the 8,699 total recorded one year previously.
The Quarterly Progress Report shows that 1,371 adults and their dependants exited from emergency accommodation or were prevented from entering into emergency accommodation in the second quarter of 2021. This bring to 2,735 the total number of exits from homelessness achieved in the year to date. All these exits were to homes with tenancies. Viewed in the context of falling homeless numbers, the number of exits from homelessness remained high in the current quarter compared to the exits achieved previously.
The Quarterly Progress Report also records the number of families who are prevented from entering emergency accommodation by way of a tenancy being created, and the number of families exiting from emergency accommodation in the Dublin region. The report shows that in the second quarter of 2021, 51% of families were prevented from having to enter emergency accommodation by way of a tenancy having been created. In the year to date, the prevention rate for families in the Dublin region stands at 55%.
In the second quarter of 2021, 220 families exited from emergency accommodation arrangements in Dublin into homes. This brings to 456 the number of families who have exited emergency accommodation in Dublin in the year to date. There were 785 dependants in these families.
Housing First provides homeless people with high support needs with housing and the wraparound supports required to maintain a tenancy. The programme delivered 60 tenancies in quarter two of 2021, spread throughout each of the nine homeless regions. There are now 587 active Housing First tenancies nationwide.
The monthly report for June 2021, which is also published today, provides a snapshot of the number of individual accessing services over the course of a count week in each given month. The June report indicates that the total number of homeless individuals, including dependants increased from 7,991 in May to 8,014 in June (+23). The May total was the lowest recorded since June 2017.
Of the homeless adults recorded in June, 4,497 (77%) are single adults (adults who are not part of a family unit). The number of single persons accessing homelessness fell in June for the fourth consecutive month.
There were 932 families in emergency accommodation during the June 2021 survey, an increase of 4 on the 928 recorded in May. The year on year position is that June 2021 shows a decrease of 227 families (20%) on the 1,159 total recorded in June 2020.
A total of 2,167 dependants, associated with these families, were in emergency accommodation in June, an increase of 19 on the 2,148 recorded in May. May represented the lowest number of dependants recorded since April 2016. The year on year position is that June 2021 shows a decrease of 486 (18%) dependants on the 2,653 recorded in June 2020. The largest number of dependants recorded to date was 3,873 in September 2019.
Commenting on the details contained in the reports published today, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien T.D. said:
“The Quarterly Progress Report for Q2 confirms the continuation of progress that has been made in reducing levels of homelessness. The number of individuals accessing emergency accommodation has been falling steadily since October 2019 when the 10,514 individuals recorded represented the highest numbers to date. That figure has fallen to 8,014 in June, a reduction of 2,500 individuals. Despite this welcome reduction, the numbers are still far too high and that is why as a Government we are focussing heavily on one bedroom homes. We thankfully recorded the lowest levels of child and family homelessness for five years during this past quarter and will be looking to build further upon this progress under Housing for All. A very welcome trend has been the continued reduction in families being accommodated in commercial hotels in the Dublin region, with an 81% reduction when compared to the same point last year. In March 2017 there were 871 homeless families in commercial hotels in Dublin. That figure has thankfully decreased considerably – to 65 in June 2021.
“Housing First is one of our key responses in ending long term homelessness among those with complex health and mental health needs. By the end of June, 587 former rough sleepers and long term users of emergency accommodation were in their own homes for life, with wrap-around supports to help them maintain their tenancies. What started out as a Dublin centred project is now very much on a national footing, with tenancies in place in every region of the country. We remain on schedule to achieve the tenancies target set out in the current National Implementation Plan, and are gearing up for a significant upscaling of the programme in 2022 and beyond.
“The reports published today are showing the progress that is being made but there is certainly much more work to be done. While the number of people homeless has been decreasing recently, the numbers are still too high. We are focussed on addressing homelessness, and will take every action we can to continue on the path of taking firm action to prevent entries into homelessness in the first instance and to help those that are homeless to exit to secure and sustained homes.
“I wish to take this opportunity to commend the staff of Dublin City Council who upgraded the Pathway Accommodation & Support System (PASS) last month with minimum disruption to vital services. As well as providing homeless services staff nationwide with an improved bespoke live case management system to better serve the needs of individuals accessing homeless services, the enhanced data analytics capability of this key infrastructural investment will be of immense benefit in guiding and measuring policy interventions as we move into the implementation phase of Housing for All.”
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