*Name changed to protect identity. Images used are for illustrative purposes and do not depict the people quoted.
Every winter in Ireland, homelessness becomes impossible to ignore. As most of us prepare to gather with family in warm, familiar surroundings, thousands of people face the festive season without the comfort or safety of home. Rising rents, a shortage of affordable housing, and growing pressure on health and social services mean more people than ever — including older people in their 60s, 70s and beyond — are being pushed into crisis. For those sleeping rough, Christmas is not a time of celebration. It is a time to survive.
For Mick*, that is the reality he faced not long ago.
When his pension could no longer cover the soaring cost of rent, Mick found himself losing his home of more than a decade. The shock of becoming homeless later in life left him overwhelmed. Struggling to cope, he turned to alcohol and soon slipped into a cycle that pushed him onto the streets — alone, exposed, and battling the cold night after night.
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“The cold gets right into your bones,” Mick recalls. “Some nights I just kept walking to stay warm. My feet would be in tatters by morning. I remember one night I collapsed on the street, crying. I couldn’t take another step.”
For older people like Mick, homelessness is not just a housing issue — it is also a health emergency. Rough sleeping accelerates ageing, worsens chronic conditions, and leaves people vulnerable to infection, injury and trauma. Many who find themselves on the streets later in life have never had contact with homelessness services before but are suddenly forced to navigate a system they don’t understand while fighting to stay alive.
One of the few moments Mick felt human again came when he met Dublin Simon Community’s Outreach team.
“They know my name,” he says. “When the lads stop to talk, it means the world. It’s the only time in the day you feel like yourself again.”
‘Homelessness is a housing, health and social emergency’
According to Catherine Kenny, chief executive of Dublin Simon Community, Mick’s story reflects a crisis far bigger than any one person.
“Homelessness in Ireland is not a temporary inconvenience — it is a housing, health and social emergency,” she says. “People like Mick are being pushed into dangerous and traumatic situations by systems that simply aren’t keeping up with need. Without urgent, sustained support, the consequences are devastating — especially for older people and those with complex health needs.”
A continuum of care when people need it most
Dublin Simon Community provides one of the most comprehensive homeless support networks in the country — a full continuum of care that walks with people from crisis to recovery to home.
This begins on the streets, 365 days a year, where the Outreach team meets people rough sleeping with compassion, persistence and practical help. From there, those in urgent need can access safe emergency accommodation across Dublin Simon’s services, where trained staff provide stability, support and a plan for what comes next.
Mick’s story is representative of many people that we support. His next step is health treatment. Dublin Simon’s new Health and Addiction Care Facility at Usher’s Island — the first of its kind in Ireland — offers detox, medical care, recovery programmes, and specialist supports under one roof. It ensures people who have survived the trauma of homelessness can access the healthcare they need to rebuild their lives.
From there, clients can move into supported accommodation, where they receive key worker support, counselling, life-skills training and a stable environment to continue their recovery. Dublin Simon’s Client Development programmes help people pursue education, develop skills, and reconnect with their confidence and purpose.
And for those ready to move on, Dublin Simon’s housing teams help people secure and sustain long-term homes. As an Approved Housing Body (AHB), the organisation develops and manages permanent housing, offering people a crucial doorway out of homelessness for good.
Wayne, who recently received the keys to his own home after years in emergency accommodation, described it simply: “It’s changed my life. It’s a moment I’ll never forget.”
A Christmas with warmth, dignity and safety
This Christmas, Mick’s journey has taken him somewhere he could never have imagined during those freezing nights on the streets: Riversdale House, Dublin Simon’s high-support accommodation service, now marking its tenth anniversary.
There, instead of walking the city until dawn, Mick sits down to a hot meal in a warm dining room. He has a bed, a door he can close, a team who knows him by name, and support that wraps around him — medically, emotionally, and practically.
“It’s the first time in a long time I’ve felt like I can breathe,” he says quietly. “You’re not surviving anymore. You’re starting to live again.”
Staff at Riversdale see this transformation every day. “When someone arrives in from the cold, the first thing they feel is relief,” one team member says. “A warm shower, a meal, a clean bed — those things don’t just meet needs. They restore dignity.”
You can help make home a reality
As the crisis deepens, Dublin Simon is supporting more people with more complex needs than ever before. But demand is outpacing resources — and the coldest months of the year are still ahead.
Every donation this Christmas helps provide warmth, care and a pathway home for people like Mick.
This Christmas, you can help make home a reality.
Please support Dublin Simon Community at dubsimon.ie.
