Homeless figures likely to hit 17,000 by Christmas

Mike Finnerty 28 Nov 2025

16,766 people availed of homeless services across Ireland in October 2025, breaking the previous all-time record high.

The figure is on a par with the population of Leixlip, County Kildare.

The all-time record high figure has been multiple times across 2025, highlighting the government being unable to get a handle on the issue.

The figure is an increase from the previous set of figures of 16,614, which were published in late October.

8,141 of the overall national figure was in Dublin.

5,274 children were in homeless services across Ireland in October 2025.

In August 2021, homeless figures stood at 8,141 nationwide, with 2,189 of those figures being children, marking a doubling of the figures in four years.

The homeless crisis has plagued the last few governments; in 2018, then-Taoiseach Leo Varadkar declared the crisis was an “emergency” when figures were sitting below 10,000 nationwide.

The homeless figures do not account for “invisible homelessness,” which may include people sleeping on friends’ and families’ couches or sleeping in their cars.

After the lifting of the no-fault eviction ban in March 2023, homeless figures, which had seen a sharp decline during that temporary measure, started to see a steady rise again and leading to the situation in 2025 where the all-time record high figures have been broken multiple times in 2025.

Sinn Féin TD Eoin O’Broin has stated that the true number of homeless people in Ireland is likely over 20,000 when “invisible homelessness” is taken into account.

Dublin Simon Community has warned that Ireland is closing 2025 without the coordinated housing, health, and social supports required to reduce numbers.

“With the winter already biting, people are again being left to survive in freezing conditions on the streets and unsecured accommodation. Many are fearful that the new housing plan will not reverse the trend of ever-increasing homelessness, but the record-breaking 16,766 people in emergency accommodation require immediate action,” a statement from the organisation read.

Catherine Kenny, CEO of Dublin Simon Community, said, “we are finishing the year almost exactly as we began with homelessness rising, with emergency accommodation stretched to its limits and with people forced to sleep in the cold.”
“Nobody should be sleeping on the streets in Ireland in 2025. Nobody should be raising a child in a hotel room. And nobody should end another year without the basic security of a place to live. Housing is a basic human right – yet thousands have no certainty of a safe, warm place tonight or at Christmas. More people than ever before are facing the festive season without a place to call home, including 7,278 single adults and 5,274 children. In a country with Ireland’s resources, this should be unthinkable.”
Kenny said the final release of the year should prompt a broader reflection on the trajectory of the crisis:
“2025 has been another year of missed opportunities. The Government has set out ambitions for social and affordable housing, and Budget 2026 brought welcome funding for homelessness. But unless these commitments are delivered quickly, at-scale and in a joined-up way — across housing, health, mental health, addiction and community supports — the overall numbers will not fall.”
The latest data from the Department of Housing confirms 16,766 individuals are now in emergency accommodation nationwide. 12,024 were recorded in Dublin, representing a 11% year-on-year increase.
Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne noted on the day of the 2024 general election 14,996 were in homeless accommodation, with the figures in November 2025 standing at 16,766.
In that time, there has been a 13.5% increase in child homelessness since the election, a figure which Hearne dubbed “shocking.”

Related News

Trending Now