Leaving her council house in Dublin to bring her four children to live in Co Clare was the “best thing” Susan Morgan ever did for her family.
She and her children, Aaron (16), Sara (14), Leila (6) and Abu (5), left their home in Blanchardstown and moved to Labasheeda – a village of about 300 people, 40km from Ennis, in August last year.
As the Department of Environment continues to examine the possibility of a rural relocation programme as a solution for some families experiencing homelessness in Dublin, Morgan says she can “highly recommend the move”.
She warns, however, people must understand what a move to a rural area entails. “It’s very quiet and you will have to travel for your conveniences. Some people are just urban and will never settle in the country.”
She had been finding life in Dublin stressful, particularly her housing situation.
Waiting 25 years
“The house was too small. My sons were sharing a box room – the size of a cell – and Aaron was trying to study for his Junior Cert. I had asked for a transfer but the council told me I could be waiting 25 years.”
She looked at larger houses in the private rented sector, but landlords were seeking up to €1,400 a month – far in excess of the €900 limit she could pay on rent allowance. “And I was struggling with the cost-of-living in Dublin.”
In receipt of lone-parents allowance of €307.20 per week, plus €173 per month maintenance from her youngest children’s father, her weekly income is €347. Her rent was €65 per week plus the cost of bus-fares, food, clothes etc.
“I was worried about becoming homeless. I was very depressed.”
Christy Moore
She contacted Rural Resettlement Ireland in June, expressing a preference for counties
Mayo
, Sligo or Kerry.
“But Jim [Connolly, founder of RRI] asked would I consider Clare. All I knew about Clare was the Burren – and Lisdoonvarna, because of Christy Moore,” she laughs.
She had an interview with Mr Connolly, who suggested she look at the four-bedroom house in which they now live. She and the children went to view it in July last year and “loved it”.
They moved the following month. The private-rented house is a 10-minute-walk from the village. Rent allowance of €40 a week towards the €500 per month rent, means Morgan has to pay €85 a week.
“I pay more rent here, but other costs are far less. It balances out,” she says.
“We were very lucky to get this beautiful house. I have a big kitchen-dining room, and this big utility room. I’ve never had a utility room. We have a big livingroom, a bedroom downstairs and upstairs three bedrooms, all en-suite.”
Abu and Leila attend Labasheeda national school, while a bus brings Aaron and Sara to and from St John Bosco community college in Kildysart, 12km away.
The national school had been about to lose a teaching post, its pupil numbers having fallen to 17 last year. Enrolling Abu and Leila helped save the post, so their arrival was greeted with “pure joy by the whole village” says principal Liam Woulfe.
Asked whether she feels too far from family in Dublin, Morgan says, “There’s a phone, and its only takes three hours to get to Dublin. Family come to visit.
"There are things we miss. We miss take-outs, and Starbucks. I used to love chai lattes, but no, without a doubt, this is the best move we ever made."
