Peter McVerry Trust, the national housing and homeless charity, has announced that it has begun to deliver social housing in County Clare for the first time. The charity is working in partnership with Clare County Council to meet the housing needs of people impacted by homelessness in the county. Peter McVerry Trust is working to scale-up housing provision and supports in the county to help move more people out of homelessness for good.

Pat Doyle, the CEO of Peter McVerry Trust said “I am delighted to be able to announce that we have begun to provide housing and supports to people in Clare and help Clare County Council to move more people out of homelessness. We have secured 6 apartments in Ennis which has allowed us to progress 13 people, made up of singles and families, out of homelessness.”

“As is our normal practice, we will be providing all individuals with intensive visiting supports. Those supports are crucial in helping to make the move into a new home a success for the tenants and the broader community. In 2016, Peter McVerry Trust opened its Mid-West Regional office in Limerick City and from there we have a dedicated a housing with supports team that provides specialist supports to our tenants, for everything from property maintenance issues to employment and education supports.”

“Our plan now is to identify new social housing opportunities in Clare that will meet the local need that exists. We are particularly interested in people with vacant homes who may qualify for the Repair and Leasing Scheme, or allow us to purchase the property under the Buy and Renew scheme. These two schemes are great as they not only provide new homes but can also deal with issues like derelict properties that require significant works before re-letting.”

“Mr Doyle concluded by thanking Clare County Council: “I’d like to thank Clare County Council for supporting us on this initiative and I believe that the partnership will go from strength to strength and lead to many more people exiting homelessness.”