Left out in thecold: A review of rural homelessness in ireland Availability of Suitable Housing The availability of suitable, affordable housing can very often be as much of a problem in rural areas as it is in urban areas; however, it can manifest in different ways. The building of social housing is now at a virtual standstill throughout the country, meaning that the private rental market plays an important role for people moving out of homelessness, be it in urban or rural area. Revised Rent Supplement limits were introduced in June 2013 by the Department of Social Protection. Although the rent limits increased in many urban areas, they were reduced in a lot of the more rural counties. The lowering of the rent supplement thresholds has caused much difficulty in finding suitable accommodation in areas outside the major cities. Although the rents are lower outside the major cities28, so too are the rent supplement limits. It was difficult to find accommodation within the old limits in some of the bigger towns within these counties, so it is even more difficult at the reduced rates. One of the major difficulties in rural areas is accessing housing for single people as the majority of the available houses have 3 and 4 bedrooms. Housing can be often distant from public transport or other facilities. Rent very often falls outside the limit for a single person29. If a single person who is homeless applied for rent supplement for such accommodation they generally would be refused on the basis of being ‘overly accommodated’. 12 In some areas where emergency accommodation is available options are limited and not suitable for problematic drug and/or alcohol users. In relation to poor quality accommodation, there is very little, if any, financial support to make improvements to such accommodation, especially for people under-65 and limited grants for those over 65 and in poor health. In addition, there are limited move on options available in rural areas for people trying to move out of homelessness. Isolation, loneliness and boredom Common problems reported by people who are homeless or who have recently moved out of homelessness, whether in urban or rural areas, are isolation, loneliness and boredom. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that isolation and boredom is exacerbated in rural areas because of the physical isolation and geographical spread in rural areas which is compounded by the lack of public transport. In the aforementioned study carried out for Simon Community on older people who are homeless, the issues of isolation and boredom were frequently mentioned30. Although this study was specifically carried out with people who were older, this can also be a problem for people of all ages who are or have been homeless in rural areas. Population decline in rural areas has contributed to the lack of social events and activities in these areas. 28 Daft Quarterly Rental Report www.daft.ie/report/ 29 Seanad Eireann-04/Jul/2012 Rent Supplements: Motion. debates.oireachtas.ie/seanad/2012/07/04/00012.asp 30 Walsh, Kathy (2013) ibid
Left out in the cold: A review of rural homelessness in Ireland
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