Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 28 May 2026
400. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether data is collected regarding the number of persons presenting as homeless or seeking emergency accommodation due to domestic abuse, broken down by local authority area and year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41157/26]
View answerMy Department’s role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of local authorities in addressing homelessness at local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of accommodation and related services for homeless persons rests with individual local authorities.
Under the Housing Act 1988 it is a matter for each local authority to determine whether a person is regarded as homeless; section 2 of the Act sets out the requirements in this regard. When a household has been assessed as homeless, section 10 of the Housing Act 1988 provides that a local authority may provide accommodation and related services to that household.
My Department currently gathers and publishes data on a monthly basis on the number of homeless persons accommodated in emergency accommodation funded and overseen by local authorities. These reports are based on data provided by local 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 March 2026. The reports are collated on a regional basis and are available on my Department's website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/collections/homelessness-data/ and are also published to the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform & Digitisation open data portal https://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. These quarterly performance reports include regional information on presentations to homeless services by new single adult and family households who entered emergency accommodation. The quarterly progress report summarises the data submitted to the Department.
Since Q2 2023, local authorities have been reporting the reasons for presentations by single adult and family households who newly enter emergency accommodation. A category for ‘Domestic Violence’ as a household reason for presenting and entering emergency accommodation was added to the progress report in Q1 2024, and ‘Leaving an Institution’ (which includes Care/Hospital/Prison/Refuge) was added in Q3 2024.
Progress and performance reports are available on my Department’s website at the following link: https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/collections/homelessness-data/.
