Rural Galway families left without local homeless emergency accommodation - ‘It’s not workable’
Families who are experiencing homelessness in County Galway are being forced to travel to Galway city to access emergency accommodation, as there is no private emergency accommodation available for families elsewhere in the county.
The absence of family-focused private emergency accommodation outside Galway city has created a significant gap in homelessness services. Local councillors warned that this represents a barrier for vulnerable families in rural areas who may struggle to travel to the city for support.
Homeless services are delivered jointly by Galway City Council and Galway County Council.
When people present to homeless services, they are initially assessed and, if approved, are considered for emergency accommodation. Single adults are generally placed in gender-specific hostels, while families are accommodated through PEA, most commonly in B&Bs.
“Galway County Council acknowledged the strain on the system saying the volume of households presenting as homeless can be challenging,” a spokesperson for Galway County Council told the Irish Independent.
“The Council is actively working on expanding the available PEA to include accommodation located in the County. Regardless of where the accommodation is located, clients will need to travel from their current location to avail of same.”
COPE Galway reported that there are currently 50 families from Galway city in PEA and 21 families from the county.
Through 2025, national data shows that over 1,500 family households were prevented from entering various types of emergency accommodations including local authority lettings, affordable housing letting, and private rentals.
“Family homelessness remains a significant challenge in Galway. To adequately respond to the number of families experiencing homelessness in Galway, prevention and increasing the social housing supply needs to be the priority,” COPE Galway said.
Further resources and out of hours support are offered by COPE Galway, in partnership with the local authority, however, councillors observe COPE Galway is similarly operating at capacity.
COPE Galway’s 2024 annual report highlighted the mounting pressure on services.
“We are operating in an increasingly difficult context marked by record homelessness, persistent domestic abuse and the progressively complex needs of Ireland’s growing ageing population,” the report stated.
The lack of emergency accommodation in rural areas has been raised repeatedly by Galway County councillors, who say resources outside the city need urgent attention.
Tuam councilor Donagh Killilea has called for greater focus on rural homelessness and the shortage of services available to families in county towns and villages.
Ballinasloe Councillor Alan Harney said it was not “feasible” to tell constituents seeking help that travelling to Galway city was their only option.
“Ballinasloe has land banks opening up,” Cllr Harney said during a Galway County Council meeting in May. “We should be looking at those opportunities to provide services. The only solution being to travel to Galway city just isn’t workable.”
COPE Galway added: “These pressures are exacerbated by growing social division, economic uncertainty and geopolitical instability, all of which are deepening demand for our services.”