Dr. Niall Muldoon:

I think it is a fantastic idea to find some way for children and young people to become engaged with summer camps. We are aware that some of the hubs have connections with voluntary organisations that allow that to happen in the local area. Most of them are outside Dublin, in which there are one or two. It is happening locally, but it could easily be moved forward on a national level.

The committee has discussed making more use of school facilities outside school terms. That might provide opportunities for all children, not just those who are homeless. If the playground was available or some supervised activity was allowed in the gymnasium - there are facilities that are unused for two or three months - we could possibly use them in different ways. They are great ideas.

On the issue of quick fixes in hubs, one of the children suggested to us that for teenagers who could not move from their bedroom to the television room or the study without their parents and other children coming with them, we could provide perhaps a university student to oversee a teenage room in order that the parents would not have to supervise every child all the time. That is the lack of privacy they experience in hubs. It is something we could do quickly.

I am fully aware of the rural homelessness. Each local authority does it differently. Donegal County Council only allows a maximum of three days' bed and breakfast accommodation.