Recent figures unveiled by Focus Ireland showed that 230 children will spend this Christmas in emergency accommodation in Cork and Kerry, while 109 families in the South West will spend Christmas without a home.
Their figures also revealed that 712 adults are currently in emergency accommodation in Cork city and county, while a record number of 5,274 children will be homeless across Ireland this Christmas.
Mr Dalton said the various fundraising initiatives in local communities play a huge part in helping Focus Ireland to provide such a vital service to people. “We do have some government funding, but we rely massively on actual fundraising, so community fundraising, fundraising in businesses and different things like church collections. Christmas is a massive time.”
Last year Focus Ireland supported 4,500 children in 2,053 families who were homeless or at risk of homelessness nationally.
So far this year, the charity has supported 49 families in Cork and helped 190 families with 419 children out of homelessness, in partnership with its supporters and the State.
The charity saw an 18% increase in the number of children it supported last year compared with 2023.
Mr Dalton said the main mission of the charity is to end homelessness. “There are a lot of families and children without their own home over their heads especially around Christmas. If we don’t keep the fundraising going, we won’t be able to deliver our services to those people that use Focus Ireland as well.”
Cian started working with Focus Ireland back in July 2024.
His primary role entails covering the Munster region for community fundraising. “My role would be to get people to sign up for our main events like around Christmas time or the Shine A Light Sleep Out, but also to facilitate someone who wants to throw a coffee morning for us. We had one in Blarney recently that raised a few thousand euros which was fantastic. The local church and a few volunteers did a lot of baking. Stuff like that would fall under the remit as well.
“People are so generous. It is when you start working in the charity sector that you kind of see it more so. The likes of schools, choirs, churches, sports clubs and different things like that. Even volunteering is so vital to us as well and collecting for us or throw on an event for us,” he added.
Mr Dalton said he continues to be shocked by the growing numbers of people homeless and living in emergency accommodation which are released on the last Friday of each month. “I am still shocked by the statistics. At the end of every month, I am not surprised when I see the number of people who are homeless continuing to rise. At this stage you are nearly expecting the numbers to go up again unfortunately. This is so sad and terrible.”
Mr Dalton continued: “When I do school talks, I always tell them that I don’t gamble but the numbers will probably go up again. The only time they go down will probably be at the end of January for the December figures. We see a trend that the numbers dip a small bit over Christmas when people might go back in with family members or friends. Then they go back up again in January when people must go back to their ‘normal’ lives again.”
“It is horrendous,” acknowledged the Focus Ireland employee who said the statistics are real people. “People of all ages and demographics now can experience homelessness. You have families spending Christmas in bed and breakfasts and hotels. How do they do Christmas or Santa in that area or environment? The statistics are real people. We have customers all over Ireland that are just trying to get on with the help of Focus Ireland. It is so tough now. We see it every day and it is such a sad situation.”
Cian was lavish in his praise for his colleagues who work on the ‘services’ side with Focus Ireland.
They interact daily with the service users in relation to budgeting and educational issues said Mr Dalton. “We have staff here who work directly with the families and the young people. I have met some of them through different events over Christmas and Easter. My colleagues who work on the services staff do fantastic work in delivering education, budgeting and checking in on people. It is not just about ensuring they have a roof over their head, but that they are living a full life as well.”
Focus Ireland also liaise with the various other national charities and stakeholders to help people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in Ireland.
Cian said Christmas is always an important time to raise funds to keep the service going. “Focus Ireland liaise with Simon with some customers. We know all the charities and all organisations, no matter if it is homelessness or whether it is for children as well. They all do such fantastic work. Especially over Christmas it is a vital time for charities to raise funds to keep every service going.
“Our headquarters is in Dublin, but we are very much local in Cork. Our office is on the Grand Parade. We have accommodation all over Cork and customers all over Cork and Kerry. We are flat out,” he added.
Mr Dalton said several factors such as the rising cost in living and the huge surge in rent is contributing to the growing number of homeless people nationwide. “There are a lot of different nuances. I would say, the rising cost in living is contributing to it. If you miss out on a couple of pay cheques, you could be very close to experiencing homelessness. The cost of living and the cost of rent is a huge factor. Some of the charges for rent for what they are offering is crazy as well.”
“We also need more social housing to be delivered,” said Mr Dalton. “The Government recently unveiled plans and they are great, but there is no date set for the social housing. We find there are promises, but we need them to be delivered on. Everyone needs to come together. We need the government and the charities to work together. We are striving towards this. “
Focus Ireland’s ‘No Child Without A Home’ campaign highlights the hidden impact and long-term harm of homelessness on children — from lost education to emotional trauma and developmental impacts, while also lobbying the government and providing solutions to end homelessness.
The charity’s five-point action plan asks the government to stop no fault evictions, stop families being evicted because of unaffordable rents, build enough of the right homes in the right places, prioritise long term homeless families for social housing and protect children by putting their needs and interests first.
Mr Dalton said Focus Ireland are ‘always’ looking for people to volunteer and join the national charity. “If people want to go on Focus Ireland and sign a petition for ‘No Child Without A Home’ that would be fantastic. That is what our advocacy department are bringing to the government as well.
“If people want to support charities, get involved in our fundraising campaign and all our different activities that would be fantastic. We are always looking for people to volunteer. The fundraising days are good fun and it is all going to a good cause,” he added.