THE Peter McVerry Trust said last Thursday night’s meeting with ministers from the Department of the Environment and Non Governmental Officers (NGO) working with the homeless, will help deliver an immediate improvement in the homelessness crisis.
Pat Doyle, chief executive of the Trust, said there were a number of important decisions taken at the meeting.
“Among the most important of these was the decision to increase the allocation of local authority housing to 50 per cent for people who are registered as homeless,
? said Mr Doyle.
“This measure will lead to a significant increase in the number of homeless households securing a home.
“In turn, it will help free up capacity in homeless services and may even help reduce the overall number in homeless services.
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Mr Doyle said another important outcome was the support of the Dublin Region Homeless Executive and the Department of the Environment to create over 200 additional beds in the sector.
“This will allow Peter McVerry Trust to create an additional 50 beds in the coming days,
? he stated.
“The Focus Ireland and Peter McVerry Trust street intake team, which forms part of our joint Housing First programme for rough sleepers, will also be working to ensure that any individual who chooses not to take up an offer of emergency accommodation is offered every other available support to ensure their wellbeing.
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