More than 200 international protection applicants in Wicklow granted legal status

By Hugh O'Farrell Walsh, The Wicklow People

New figures show 209 international protection applicants living in accommodation centres in County Wicklow have been granted legal status, allowing them to remain in Ireland.

This compares with 496 within the remit of South Dublin County Council, 61 within Wexford County Council and 94 within Kildare County Council, as of September 2025.

This is not a static number of people; approximately 11,000 people with status nationwide have been moved out of IPAS accommodation since 2022, and almost 3,500 this year to date.

The state is currently accommodating almost 33,000 people in 318 International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) centres around the country, more than 9,500 of whom are children.

The Department of Justice currently has contracts with 15 properties in County Wicklow for the purpose of State-supported accommodation for those affected by the war in Ukraine.

These 15 properties range from 16 beds to 375 beds and collectively accommodate approximately 1,200 applicants. These contracts commenced between January and September of this year and are due to end between October 2025 and February 2026.

The Department currently has no plans to terminate these contracts. However as with all accommodation contracts, this is subject to regular review.

A process of renewing relevant contracts where appropriate is currently underway, issuing mainly short-term contracts of three to six months duration.

Where contracts between the Department and accommodation providers for those fleeing the war in Ukraine come to an end, the future use of the property is a commercial decision for the provider.

Future use of the Avon in Blessington remains under review after 95 Ukrainian refugees were moved out of the site in early August.

The garden county recorded one of the steepest drops in the number of people staying in State-provided accommodation this year, with IPAS occupancy down 17pc since January and operating below the national average.

The Garden County had 1,284 people in accommodation in the week ending November 2, 2025, compared with 1,542 at the start of the year. With 1,352 contracted places, that gives an occupancy rate of about 95pc, while the national rate stood at around 98 pc.

Wicklow remains one of only five counties with more than 1,200 people in IPAS accommodation, alongside Dublin, Cork, Galway and Kildare. Despite the recent fall in numbers, the Garden County continues to host one of the largest accommodation populations outside the main urban centres.

At a recent meeting of the Public Accounts Committee, Wicklow TD John Brady, who currently chairs the committee raised concerns about how the system is currently being managed.

“In my constituency last year, there was a site in Newtownmountkennedy where a serious failure occurred. This is probably replicated across the State. There was a failure to properly engage with communities and inappropriate locations were chosen in which to put accommodation.

“There is the failure to engage with communities and public representatives. There is also the appropriateness of sites like Newtownmountkennedy, which is in a very rural area. There are the additional pressures they put on communities and the failure to appropriately engage with the communities and other service providers.” he added.

Separately, during a discussion about migration in the Dáil, Wicklow TD Edward Timmins stated the importance of having a fair system in place.

“It is important that centres are not all located in one area, or that small towns and villages do not have very high numbers. In my own county of Wicklow, most IPAS centres and numbers of people seeking international protection are in one municipal district, namely, west Wicklow.”

“This district is also the most poorly served by public transport and services. Above all, these measures should be introduced quickly. One of the main issues I have seen since I entered the Dáil is how slowly things move. The world out there moves quickly.”

“Government action and the action of relevant public servants must move much more quickly and reflect the realities on the ground. We see this in infrastructure delivery. These delays are causing hardship for those involved and costing the taxpayer hundreds of millions of euros.” he added.

Deputy Timmins believes all citizens of the State need to be treated equally. “In the case of IPAS residents who are working and earning a wage, there must be a contribution to all accommodation costs.”

“Rent should be calculated along the lines of the letting priority scheme of local authorities. Food and utility costs must also be charged. This is the same as what any citizen in this State pays.”

Deputy Timmins also expressed the importance of choosing our words carefully.

“We must not say anything that might inflame situations or give encouragement to any extreme positions. We must always stick to facts and remember that we are talking about fellow human beings.”

“The most important thing is that we have open and frank discussions. By having open discussions, we lessen the possibility of false information and extreme positions taking hold.” he added.