The problem of homelessness in Cork can and will be solved, the authors of a new three-year strategy to deal with the problem said yesterday.
Every night 350 homeless people seek shelter in Cork city and up to 20 others sleep rough on the streets. Under a strategy which will bring all the agencies dealing with homelessness in the city together, an integrated approach to the problem will seek to target funds in a more focused manner and prepare a strategy to abolish homelessness, or at least to reduce it substantially within three years.
In tandem with the start of the strategy, "Homelessness - An Integrated Strategy for Cork 2001-2003", the Southern Health Board, one of the partners in the plan, announced yesterday that more than £600,000 would be distributed through the various voluntary organisations dealing with poverty and homelessness in Cork. They include the Cork Simon Community, St Vincent de Paul and Good Shepherd Services.
The plan was written after two years of consultation with the various agencies and local authorities as well as homeless people themselves, and it has six stated objectives.
It envisages the development of a homeless persons unit in Cork in consultation with all the agencies; the provision of sufficient accommodation to ensure that every homeless person has immediate shelter; and the creation of a climate in which all homeless people will be directed towards the appropriate health and welfare services in the city.
The fourth objective of the plan is to ensure that every person who becomes homeless has access to shelter, followed by transitional housing and later permanent housing with adequate back-up services.
The plan calls for action to break and prevent the cycle of homelessness, taking into account that many homeless people come from poor educational backgrounds and that ongoing unemployment as well as a history of institutional care or prison may form a part of their history.
The final objective of the plan will lead to the appointment of an independent facilitator to bring the various strands together and to ensure that all the agencies are working in tandem and to the best effect.
Funding for the plan has not been finalised, despite the £600,000 for homeless agencies announced by the health board. According to a spokesman for Cork Corporation, an approach for finance will be made to the Government later this year, once the exact needs have been identified.