Focus Ireland says slight fall in homelessness figures must not distract from need for urgent action and protection of access to emergency shelter

There are now 17,447 people recorded as homeless, including: 5,583 children across 2,684 families. There was a decrease of 101 people experiencing homelessness compared with April, including 21 fewer children and 23 fewer families.

While this represents a drop on the previous month, Focus Ireland said the figures remain far too high and underline the need for stronger Government action both to prevent homelessness and to help people move quickly into secure homes.

Latest figures show that homelessness has increased significantly over the past year, with overall levels in May 2026 standing 11 per cent higher than in May 2025. The rise has been particularly acute among families, where numbers have grown by 18 per cent, alongside a 15 per cent increase in the number of children experiencing homelessness. Adult homelessness has also risen, with a 9 per cent increase recorded over the same period, underlining the continued pressure being faced across all groups.

Focus Ireland said that any welcome fall in the figures must be seen in context. Thousands of children are still growing up without the stability of a home, while many adults and families remain trapped in emergency accommodation for far too long.

The charity restated its opposition to new Government legislation which will result in some vulnerable homeless people being refused emergency shelter. The organisation has written to the Minister making the case that providing shelter to vulnerable people should be the default position.

Focus Ireland CEO Pat Dennigan said: “Focus Ireland has always said that the measure used by the Department of Housing to capture the true scale of homelessness in Ireland only reveals one aspect of the problem. These monthly figures only capture those individuals and families who have accessed emergency accommodation. We know, through the work of our services, that people are consistently being refused emergency accommodation due to a shortage of places. We know that people are instead forced to find alternative and unsuitable forms of temporary accommodation and are not represented in the monthly figures.”

Focus Ireland’s work with the EU Homeless Count project published earlier this week sets out a blueprint for a more comprehensive approach to measuring homelessness. We hope the Government will use their period as President of the EU to promote this approach across the EU.

Mr Dennigan adds: “It remains to be seen if the small decrease in last month’s numbers is the beginning of a more positive trend, and if that trend emerges it will be extremely important that the particular measures that are driving it are captured and replicated across the country.

“But in the meantime, it is imperative that key measures are progressed with urgency including the Child and Family Homelessness Action Plan, the National Prevention Framework and the review of the HAP Scheme. These measures, if implemented correctly will prevent people from reaching the crisis point of entering homelessness and improve the numbers of people exiting homelessness to a secure and stable home.”