Niamh Randall, Head of Policy and Communications/National Spokesperson at Simon Communities of Ireland, debunks six of the most common misconceptions surrounding homelessness in Ireland today. 

1. Homelessness is not a big issue in Ireland

Ireland is in the middle of a catastrophic housing and homelessness crisis. Dublin's official rough sleeper count reported 168 people sleeping rough in November 2014. 20% increase since November 2013, the highest since the count began in 2007. 

From October 20th -26th 2014 there were:

• 2, 580 adults in emergency accommodation nationally. 
• 1,648 people in the Dublin region and 932 people in the rest of the country. 
• 479 of those in emergency accommodation had dependents. 
• There were 798 children in emergency accommodation during this week.

There are 90k households on the social housing waiting list. In the private rented sector, rents have increased by 11% from while the numbers of properties available to rent have reduced by 34% since Q3 2013 .

If we don’t move quickly and wisely long-term homelessness will become an epidemic.

This will mean thousands of people – including individuals, families and children – will have nowhere to call home. It will mean more people facing a brutal winter on our streets, more families sleeping in their cars, serious illness, depression and death. It will mean more ‘working’ homeless. More pressure on overrun shelters. More people on the housing lists.

File photo, Credit: Photocall Ireland

2. Homelessness is the person’s own fault

Homelessness rarely has one single cause; usually it is due to a number of factors. Primary causes relate to poverty, inequality and lack of affordable housing, often coupled with systems failures and individual circumstance. Often it’s a combination of factors.

Homelessness can mean sleeping rough, staying in emergency hostels or shelters, staying in temporary bed and breakfast accommodation or staying with friends and relatives (hidden homelessness) when there is nowhere else to go. Homelessness is all of these things.

For people experiencing homelessness it is about a lack of security, a lack of belonging and often about being cold, sick and isolated. What is clear is the once people become homeless the impact on their health and wellbeing is devastating. 603 people using Simon Community services around the country participated in our Health Snapshot Study in 2011 and 65% reported at least one diagnosed physical health condition and 47% at least one diagnosed mental health condition. 

3. Only single men are homeless

This homelessness crisis is affecting everyone - people in our cities, in urban and rural areas; and across every aspect of society - single people, young people, older people, families, people with severe health problems, people battling drug and alcohol issues, people this state has failed from a young age.
More women and families are experiencing homelessness and turning to homeless services. Women make up approximately one third of the adult homeless population in Ireland yet women who are homeless remain largely ‘hidden’. In October, 479 of those in emergency accommodation had dependents and there were almost 800 children in emergency accommodation.

In our recent study on Women and Homelessness (2014) we found 92% of women experienced some form of violence across their life cycle and 55% experienced violence both as adults and a children. Many of the women experienced household instability and homelessness as children.

4. Homelessness only happens in our big cities, it’s an urban phenomenon

Homelessness is usually associated with urban areas and linked with rough sleeping certainly the issue is often more acute and visible in cities however evidence from the Simon Communities around Ireland shows that it is very much present in rural areas too .

Rural homelessness tends to be more ‘hidden’ where people are not necessarily sleeping rough, instead they are staying with family and friends or they are living in over-crowded and unfit accommodation. Limited access to homelessness and support services is increasing the risk of homelessness in rural areas and is also preventing people from moving out of homelessness. In addition people often migrate to urban centres seeking services and support.

Responses must be nationally driven but locally resourced and delivered, to ensure people can remain in their communities where they have family and support networks. In fact, these are often the times this is most important.

5. People don’t want to be helped to leave homelessness behind

People can and do leave homelessness behind for good, they just need the right support and services. The solution to homelessness is providing appropriate housing with support tailored to each person’s needs. In the past it was common to tackle homelessness using the 'staircase model' where people had to achieve a number of goals (e.g. becoming drug/alcohol free) over a period of time to become 'housing ready' before being housed. This approach resulted in managing rather than ending homelessness. It is lengthy, can contribute to long-term homelessness and tie-up much needed emergency accommodation.

Housing-led approaches aim to move people out of homelessness as quickly as possible and into permanent housing where tailored support services can be much more effective. This is the approach Government has committed to using to end long term homelessness by 2016.

This approach really works and the Simon Communities all around the country are developing and implementing such approaches. The main barrier at present is access to affordable housing.

6. There will always be homeless

If we are supported and resourced to successfully implement a housing led approach with effective prevention and early intervention services, we will significantly reduce the numbers of people becoming and at risk of homelessness and can ensure that people who do enter services are rapidly rehoused with adequate support services. This will effectively end long term homelessness where people, are trapped in emergency accommodation or rough sleeping for periods of time.

However, the current housing shortage is impeding progress and unless addressed urgently will result in the Government failing to achieve their 2016 target of ending long term homelessness and rough sleeping. Homelessness is the most acute form of housing need and must be prioritised.