Submission on Draft Guidelines to Part V of Planning and Development Act 2000.

Introduction
The Simon Communities in Ireland welcome the opportunity to comment on the Draft Guidelines in
relation to Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 (the Act). The Simon Communities work with
over 7,500 people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness each year. We are now over half way through
2016 and the numbers of people who are homeless continue to grow; with the numbers entering
homelessness greater than the numbers exiting. This housing and homeless crisis is impacting every region
and community around the country. It is a nationwide crisis, more acute in our urban centres but certainly
present in our rural areas too. The number of people trapped in emergency accommodation has continued
to grow in the first seven months of 2016. During one week in July 2016 (latest available figures), there
were 6,525 men, women and children in emergency accommodation across the country; a 40% increase
from July 2015. This included 2,667 adults with no dependents in their care and 1,130 families made up of
1,510 adults and 2,348 children.
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