Peter McVerry Trust, the national housing and homeless charity, has launched a new five-year strategic plan which will see the charity deliver new social housing units in the Midlands regiond before the end of 2025.
“We were delighted to launch our strategic plan which sets ambitious targets to significantly grow our delivery of new homes and also ensures that the organisation remains well-governed, innovative and continues to deliver each and every day for those on the margins of Irish society.
“Our focus is very much on small-scale, scattered-site social housing and the Midlands is one of the priority areas that we are looking to quickly ramp up our social housing delivery in. The challenge is to secure opportunities which are value for money and can be delivered quickly,” Pat Doyle, CEO of Peter McVerry Trust, said.
Housing First
Mr Doyle said he hoped the plan would allow for the continued growth of Housing First across Westmeath and the Midlands region, a programme designed to tackle rough-sleeping and long-term homelessness.
“In particular, the plan sees Peter McVerry Trust set the largest target yet by an AHB for homes through the Housing First model in Ireland, as we set out to deliver 600 additional Housing First units by the end of 2025. Working in partnership with local authorities, we are growing the Housing First numbers in the Midlands all the time, meaning more rough sleepers are getting housed and supported to maintain their housing. We are also growing the number of units we can deliver for care leavers and other complex-need families,” Mr Doyle concluded.
Building on Core Services
Mr Doyle said that growing the charity’s housing provision will continue to go hand-in-hand with delivery of its traditional services and supports.
“The strategic plan is about ensuring that, as an organisation, we remain agile, innovative and most importantly, deliver on our ethos and on the needs of the people with whom we work.
“We will continue to respond as best we can by delivering a range of services and supports in the areas of homelessness, addiction, Under 18s residential care and education and employment. We are working closely with key stakeholders in all those areas to identify new initiatives that can respond to current or future needs,” Mr Doyle added.
Partnership Approach
Mr Doyle said the strategic plan would only be successfully delivered through a partnership approach.
“While Peter McVerry Trust may secure some of the headlines for our work, all that we do is enabled and supported by the State, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and other Government Departments and various State Agencies, as well as Peter McVerry Trust’s own donors and supporters.
“At the outset of this new plan I want to acknowledge all those bodies and individuals who work with us to achieve our joint objectives and, in particular, thank Westmeath County Council for their support,” Mr Doyle concluded.
