The number of people sleeping rough in Dublin city centre has grown by more than 60 per cent in three years, figures released today show. Some 202 people were sleeping rough in the capital's city centre during a "street count" conducted between October 15th and 21st. Similar counts in June 1998 and December 1997 showed 125 and 149 people sleeping rough, respectively.
When compared with statistics from similarly sized cities in Britain, the Dublin figure is more than the combined total for five such cities.
Counts by the British Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions and the Homeless Network found 44 people sleeping rough in Manchester, 43 in Birmingham, 30 in Liverpool, 52 in Oxford and 31 in Nottingham. The Irish figures were gathered by Simon Outreach in conjunction with Focus Ireland and Dublin Corporation. Mr Greg Maxwell, director of Dublin Simon, said the count showed the problem of homelessness in Ireland was at "crisis point".
"Comparing the number of rough sleepers in Dublin to that in the UK highlights the scale of the problem. And while rough sleeping in London has fallen from 1,200 in 1991 to about 300 today, rough sleeping in Dublin steadily increases."
Numbers around the State are also growing. The Cork Simon Community estimates "about 100 sleeping out" and an increase of 40 per cent on last year. In Galway there are "about eight" and the number is increasing, according to Galway Simon. A spokesman for Dundalk Simon estimated "about four or five" rough sleepers, adding that the problem of homelessness was "rising". The proportion of those homeless for more than one year grew from 62 per cent in 1997 to 68 per cent this year.
Some 15 per cent had been homeless for six months or less, 17 per cent for six to 12 months, 38 per cent for one to five years and 30 per cent had been homeless for more than five years.
The lack of "move-on" accommodation "is having an impact not only on the numbers sleeping rough but also on the length of time rough sleepers spend homeless," the report says.
The number of rough sleepers under the age of 25 has fallen slightly, from 61 in the 1998 count to 59 this year. However, the proportion of the total (30 per cent) is high compared to London, where 19 per cent of rough sleepers are in this age bracket. Asked if they would accept accommodation if it were offered, 94 per cent said they would.
Among the factors behind the increase in those sleeping rough highlighted in the report are a lack of move-on accommodation, a lack of emergency accommodation, a lack of adequate community care services, a lack of preventive services for those leaving prison, care and the Army, and an increase in drug misuse combined with legislation which permits local authorities to evict for such behaviour.
