Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 6 July 2023
78. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he can detail the number of people currently in emergency accommodation; the numbers who have been there for over 12 months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33038/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department currently gathers and publishes data on a monthly basis on the number of homeless persons accommodated in emergency accommodation funded and overseen by housing authorities. These reports are based on data provided by housing authorities, produced through the Pathway Accommodation & Support System (PASS).
The monthly homelessness report includes details of individuals, families and the dependants of these families who accessed emergency accommodation during the relevant count week of the month in question. The most recently published data is in respect of May 2023. The reports are collated on a regional basis and are available on my Department's website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/80ea8-homelessness-data/ and are also published to the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform's open data portal data.gov.ie/.
My Department also publishes quarterly progress reports which are based on quarterly performance reports submitted by the nine regional lead authorities responsible for the administration of homeless services at local level. The quarterly performance reports include details of the numbers of individuals prevented from entering emergency accommodation, and those exiting emergency accommodation, into tenancies, and the duration of stay in emergency accommodation. The quarterly progress report summarises the data submitted to the Department.
The duration of stay data is reported as six-monthly bands ranging from less than six months to more than 24 months and is also disaggregated by household type. These bands refer to consecutive stays in emergency accommodation and are based on a point-in-time count, informed by emergency accommodation usage on the last night in the quarter. The most recent published data is in respect of Q1 2023 and the report is available on my Department’s website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/80ea8-homelessness-data/.
