A new report on ‘Homelessness in Northern Ireland’ published today by the Northern Ireland Assembly Public Accounts Committee, calls for significant changes to how homelessness is addressed.
The Committee’s findings, informed by written and oral evidence from expert witnesses including Simon Community, highlights how underinvestment in long-term prevention work and an insufficient supply of social and affordable housing is driving record levels of homelessness and soaring spend on temporary accommodation.
The report’s key recommendations include:
- Official data should measure the number of people experiencing homelessness – not just households - to reflect the true scale of the crisis.
- A long-term, properly funded approach to homelessness prevention, including the introduction of a Statutory Prevention Duty to protect funding for this work.
- A significant increase in the supply of social housing which is key to reducing homelessness.
Jim Dennison, Simon Community’s Chief Executive welcomes the report recommendations:
“Simon Community welcome the Committee’s report which confirms what frontline services have long known: our approach to homelessness must change.
We endorse the recommendation that official reporting must be more people-focused – something Simon Community has long called for. Reporting only the number of households experiencing homelessness minimises the devastating human impact of not having a safe place to call home. Right now, more than 62,000 people are experiencing homelessness in Northern Ireland. Official statistics must reflect this reality so that we can properly measure and respond to the true cost of homelessness.
We are also pleased to see a strong emphasis on prevention which must be central to the approach to tackling homelessness, not an afterthought. For many, the roots of homelessness begin months or even years before losing your home. If we are serious about prevention, we must intervene earlier before crisis takes hold. Introducing a Statutory Duty on Prevention would be a vital first step in shifting resources towards stopping homelessness before it happens.
The report rightly identifies increasing housing supply as key to preventing and ending homelessness. Across Northern Ireland, people and families remain trapped in hotels, B&Bs and temporary accommodation, losing hope of a home of their own. The Executive have stated that delivering more social and affordable housing is a priority, but so far funding for this has fallen well short of what is required. Until funding matches ambition and need, services will remain under intense pressure and people will continue to face uncertainty.
Every day at Simon Community, we see the toll homelessness takes – families torn apart, children growing up in instability and young people living without hope for their future. But this is not inevitable. This report sets out a clear direction for change. The next step must be action.”
You can read the full report here.