19 babies were born into homeless charities in Ireland last year

Almost 20 babies were born in homeless services in Ireland last year.

This is according to the Depaul Ireland annual report which was published this morning. It reported that 19 babies were born while their parents were living in one of the country's homeless services. Only last week the news broke of a homeless mother who lost her babies after giving birth in a Dublin hotel, bringing to light the harsh reality of the current homeless crisis. Last year, DePaul assisted 3,961 homeless men, women and children in Northern Ireland and the Republic, an increase of 9.42 per cent on 2016. The charity provided a total of 604 beds each night in 2017, an increase of 22 per cent on the previous year. Promises have been made since the 2019 budget was announced stating that there will be significant investment put into affordable housing in a bid to tackle the issue of homelessness, particularly for families. Many families in Ireland are finding themselves unable to secure social housing or private rentals and some have found themselves pushed out of the homes that they were renting when the landlord decides to sell the property. Figures in August showed that over 5,834 adults and 3,693 children were living in emergency accommodation and unless a solution comes soon these figures are predicted to continue to rise.