Ms Sinéad Breathnach:

I thank committee members for the invitation to join this meeting to share some of our experiences and progress on addressing homelessness in Waterford and the south-east region. I have included a report that addresses the relevant recommendations from the Interim Report on Homelessness from a south-east perspective. The report also outlines some of the national and regional initiatives implemented in the south east, which have helped us in bringing about a collaborative and consistent approach to addressing homelessness and providing better housing, social and health outcomes for our service users.

Some of our regional initiatives are currently subject to a case study by the Housing Agency for inclusion in a policy and practice insights paper, with a view to promoting them as best practice. They include the review and strengthening of our regional structures, our innovative own-front-door model of emergency accommodation, the introduction of homeless prevention and support workers to local authority homeless teams, and the use of care and case management throughout all our services. The care and case management framework is used to identify the support needs of our service users and to address issues that may have caused or contributed to their homelessness in the first instance. This framework is embedded throughout our services and is key to preventing rebound homelessness in the region, where our priority focus is on homeless prevention and tenancy sustainment.

Much progress has been made in the region on addressing and managing homelessness over the past number of years, which is mainly due to a significant shift in culture where the local authorities, the HSE and the homeless service providers have committed to working together in preventing and addressing homelessness and in improving the health, social and housing outcomes for our service users. Having that strong partnership approach has enabled us to be more proactive, progressive and innovative in managing the homeless crisis and has had a substantial positive impact in the region. I acknowledge the dedication and commitment of all involved. I very much recommend and promote this partnership approach to managing homelessness.