Sleep out to raise awareness of plight of the homeless

SINCE the start of 2015, 76% more people are in emergency accommodation in Ireland. That statistic does not include the high number of people who are unfortunately sleeping rough on streets across the country.

One of the big questions being asked is: ‘What are the government doing about homelessness in Ireland?'

One group of people who are helping the work for an answer are the March for Homeless group in Mayo. They have organised a sleep out in Castlebar tomorrow (Saturday, October 10) to raise awareness for the plight of the homeless.

Organiser Angela Meehan said homelessness was always seen as an inner city problem but it’s happening everywhere now.

“The sleep out is to raise awareness to people around Mayo, and in particular Castlebar, as that’s where we will be, that might be out on a Saturday night that do not realise what’s going on,” she explained.

“There is a problem called the hidden homeless and it’s a lot of people who have no fixed abode but are sleeping on friends' or relatives couches. They are generally not in the statistics. They are hidden away and are going from one place to another and trying to find a bed.

“You might not see these people too often in places like Castlebar but a few weeks ago there was a guy sleeping rough in an archway in Swinford for a few nights, so it is happening. And if you see it in a small town like Swinford then it is definitely happening in bigger areas.”

The event takes place on Linenhall Street, close to the constituency office of Taoiseach Enda Kenny. Some local businesses have gotten involved, with Thunder Road café and the Irish House Bar offering refreshments to those sleeping out.

The sleep out takes place from 8 p.m. and more information can be found on marchforthehomeless.org.