Homeless charity Depaul has revealed that in 2020 it helped source move-on accommodation for 36 people who were living in the Old Convent direct provision centre in Ballyhaunis.
The number included 17 adults, 19 children and 10 families. In total, the charity supported 246 adults and 196 children to move away from Direct Provision in 2020. The charity had been providing support to Direct Provision centres in seven counties in Ireland; however, in November, this expanded to nine.
Depaul’s CEO, David Carroll, commented: "We were delighted to support so many people to exit Direct Provision during 2020. It really is an incredible achievement given the challenges we have all faced. Despite all this, over 400 people are now integrating into communities all across Ireland and that is a real positive outcome.
"It is important that progress in this area is continued and as an organisation, we are always ready to play our part. We know from our own research that people who have previously been in Direct Provision have accessed emergency accommodation.
"That is why we feel this initiative is so important as it mitigates the risk of people ending up in homeless services once they have been granted the legal right to stay in Ireland," he said.
