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'I felt so alone and afraid': Out of the care system and straight into homelessness

The number of homeless 18-24 year olds has shot up in the last three years.

THE NUMBER OF homeless 18-24 year-olds has shot up by 78% in the last three years according to the latest figures.

The Department of Housing has reported 776 young people were homeless and in emergency accommodation in the week of 20-26 February this year. Back in April 2014 this figure was 436.

Focus Ireland’s Easter appeal focuses on the story of a 19-year-old woman called Paula who recently experienced a period of sleeping on the streets and in emergency accomodation.

“My mam had depression and she was an alcoholic. I had no brothers or sisters and dad died when I was a baby. At times it felt there was nobody to take care of me,” she said. “It wasn’t the best childhood. I was moved into care and lived in a couple of different places where there was a fair bit of bullying, and lots of people getting into drink and drugs.”

At 18, she exited the care system and said she felt “so alone and afraid”.

I packed my things and moved to a bedsit I’d found, but I only ended up lasting one night. It was filthy, damp, mouldy, and crawling with insects. The neighbours were scary. I left. And that is when I become homeless.

“I was terrified,” she remembers. “I cried and cried and cried. I didn’t know what was going to happen to me. I tried to find somewhere more long-term to stay. But there was nothing I could afford.”

She got in touch with Focus Ireland and a temporary place was found for the young woman. They are now working towards getting her a flat of her own to move into.

I can’t tell you how amazing it is not to be on the streets anymore. I don’t have to kill time on a dark corner until a shelter will let me in for the night. I don’t have to share a room with strangers who are a lot older than me. I honestly feel like that’s all behind me now. So one day soon I’m going to close my own door, lock it behind me and feel safe. I’m going to put the kettle on, sit down, relax and start planning my next move – looking for a job, doing a course and starting my new life.

Young people in this age bracket now make up 10% of the recorded number of 7, 421 people who are currently homeless in Ireland.

Focus Ireland’s Director of Advocacy Mike Allen said these young people have been “hit hard” by the reduced rate of social welfare available to them.

“When a young person falls into the nightmare that is homelessness, there’s always an underlying reason. Not getting accommodation or support upon leaving State care, family problems, mental health challenges and/or purely economic pressures and unemployment,” he said.

It is wrong that young people are often left to fend for themselves in these situations. Focus Ireland – and others – are providing many vital services in co-operation with the State and local authorities but a lot more needs to be done as these young people are in danger of becoming the forgotten homeless if we don’t have more action.

The charity’s service ‘Housing First for Youth’ provides young people like Paula with housing as quickly as possible and then intensive person-centres supports like healthcare, counselling, education, training and financial advice.

“Our Housing First for Youth pilot scheme in Limerick has seen huge success – we’ve already set up 40 young people in secure homes,” Allen said.

“Twelve of them are in secondary school or third level education and 23 are in training or employment. A crucial factor in the success of the pilot has been the active collaboration of Limerick County Council , TUSLA and alongside the resources we can bring to this project.”

Read: ‘You had to walk through a pub to get to your room, the smell of drink and drugs was disgusting’>

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24 Comments
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    Mute Christina Melia
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    Apr 17th 2017, 10:27 AM

    I can’t believe that once these kids hit 18 they just get fecked out of the system and left to fend for themselves. Shameful.

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    Mute Joe Bloggs
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    Apr 17th 2017, 11:07 AM

    @Christina Melia: They’re not. There’s an apartment block in Tallaght with a load of 18 year olds who are just out of care.

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    Mute Christina Melia
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    Apr 17th 2017, 11:34 AM

    @Joe Bloggs: Fair enough, but that’s just one place …

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    Mute Joe Bloggs
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    Apr 17th 2017, 11:50 AM

    @Christina Melia: who’s to say that it’s the only place?

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    Mute Arn
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    Apr 17th 2017, 5:27 PM

    @Joe Bloggs: This article pretty much makes out they are being fecked out when they reach 18/19 and that is what Christina is obviously referring to. No need to be such a smart ass.

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    Mute David Harkin
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    Apr 17th 2017, 10:27 AM

    It’s telling that an article about homelessness and the breakdown of the system is featuring an advert for Ulster Bank mortgages. We’re becoming desensitised to the chronic homelessness issue.

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    Mute Suzie Sunshine
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    Apr 17th 2017, 10:34 AM

    @David Harkin: all adds are different. . The add I’m seeing is for a radio station..

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    Mute stephen tiernan
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    Apr 17th 2017, 12:59 PM

    @Suzie Sunshine: mine’s for gin!

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    Mute Suzie Sunshine
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    Apr 17th 2017, 1:44 PM

    @stephen tiernan: music and drink . Great combination. .

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    Mute John O'Driscoll
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    Apr 17th 2017, 11:57 AM

    Imagine if your 18 yr old daughter was left to shift for herself on the streets with few life-skills and god knows what emotional and psychological damage to date; hanging around dark areas where predators lurk waiting for some flea-ridden bed in a shelter maybe if she’s lucky enough to make it past the two legged insects. And there’s 740 of them, daughters and sons, kids really in adult bodies, out there tonight. 100 years on from all the blood and thunder about cherishing all the children of the nation and all that mar dhea.

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    Mute Kerry Blake
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    Apr 17th 2017, 10:58 AM

    So is this part of the recovery we heard so much about from FG during the last election?

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    Mute Paul Cullen
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    Apr 17th 2017, 10:44 AM

    Best of luck Paula, you sound like you have a great attitude which is half the battle, onwards and upwards!!

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    Mute Joe Burns
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    Apr 17th 2017, 1:04 PM

    Folks, this isn’t a story about homelessness, it’s a wake-up call about how dysfunctional Tusla really is. The issue of kids ripped from loving homes for silly reasons by incompetent social workers has been going on for years. Google a report called “On Our Own” written years ago by homelessness experts about how Tusla/HSE/Health Boards/CFA have been dumped on the streets for years. Virtually nothing has changed since the report was written. Its not Rocket Science, would you dump your child on the streets at 18?

    And who is responsible for this? While many of you would praise Foster Carers as “heroes”, don’t forget these kids were in Foster “Care”, why did their “parents” dump them out? Of the 10% who were in Residential “Care” at 5,000 per week, per child, 100% of those children ended up homeless after being “Cared For” by the State. The “Care” Industry is big business as is the Billion-a-Year “Child Abuse Industry”.

    And how did these children end up in “Care”? In the vast majority of cases their parents committed no crime, if you take a close look at DPP statistics you will see very few prosecutions of parents for child abuse or neglect. In most cases children are removed on the basis of; “Risk of Future Emotional Abuse”, the theory that a child may (or equally may not) have a poor outcome in life, and the solution is to alienate the children from their parents, siblings and family, and place them at far higher risk in State “Care”.

    Where is the public outcry? How much evidence do you need about how corrupt Tusla is? Maurice McCabe & others, the “Grace” Case & many more, the fact that the suicide rate of children in “care” is 10 TIMES the national average, the fact that a child in Irish State “Care” is 6 TIMES more likely to die or be sexually assaulted, 2 times more likely to be suffering from PTSD than troops returning from war zones, I could go on and on.

    But hang on, if the State decides a parent is not capable of looking after a child and takes the child away, shouldn’t that child have a far better outcome in life than had they been left with their parents? So why do these children have FAR WORSE outcomes 80% of the time? Again, it’s not Rocket Science, Child Protection doesn’t work in any country where social workers are at the helm of “protecting” children.

    Where are all the Children’s “Charities” who advised us to give away our parental rights in the Children’s Referendum and told us a bunch of lies? They are all doing very well growing their NGO’s and providing jobs for their many employees, how they actually help children, nobody knows. Surely if these “Charities” were “at the coalface” as they purport to be, they would have tackled the issue over a decade ago when it was first raised?

    No folks, this is not a story about homelessness, its yet another story of a corrupt government who support corrupt Tusla and the Child Abuse Industry. I feel sorry for this young lady, but there are so many like her at this point, I can only blame the Irish Public for allowing this to happen to her. While your at it, spare a thought for the child who died in Irish State “Care” last week, and the one who will die next week, and the week after, and the week after, ad infinitum.

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    Mute Bernard Cantillon
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    Apr 17th 2017, 5:04 PM

    @Joe Burns: that is absolute and utter bollocks. There is a very high threshold required to be met when a child is in state care. Future risk is based on the parenting heretofore. Social workers work collaboratively with parents to address the issues which caused risk to their children in the past and present, whether those be addiction, mental health problems or behavioural issues. In the overwhelming majority of cases, social work intervention is time limited and improvements are observed and sustained and the children never need to come into state care or they can be reunited with their parents.

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    Mute Bernard Cantillon
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    Apr 17th 2017, 5:05 PM

    @Joe Burns: Unfortunately, for some others, the problems persist and therefore the risks to the children remain significant and the children need to come into the care of the state. In care, relationships with parents, siblings and other family are prioritised and nurtured. Sadly many children and young people coming into care have suffered long lasting emotional trauma as a result of the abuse and/or neglect experienced whilst in the care of their parents and this can be difficult to treat and address, but social workers seek to ensure that children in care are referred for appropriate therapeutic services.

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    Mute Nicola Stone
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    Apr 18th 2017, 2:10 AM

    @Bernard Cantillon: @Joe Burns is correct. You are quoting text book, not reality. Educate yourself by reading some published cases on Courts.ie and the child reporting project. (Or perhaps they are also wrong)
    Until as recent as 2013 I dealt with cases of children taken in care on the risk of “possible future emotional abuse”. Many of them were completely alienated (not estranged) from their parents to keep them in foster care. (See essay by APS on the subject of Alienation to keep in care).When a child is alienated, reunification is ruled out. TUSLA, Barnardos and some legal eagles are the worst culprits in alienation. Again, research for yourself how many employees or agents of TUSLA or Barnardos GAL services are Parental Alienation Aware certified. (According to the last publication of the EU register, there are only 4 persons certified in Ireland – none with TUSLA, HSE or Barnardos).
    Also research for yourself, do not trust me, the pending criminal investigations against TUSLA employees or agents. According to High Court records there are even allegations of Torture – yes UNCAT – being investigated. Finally, research for yourself: How many reunifications did take place prior to 2013? – Zero. (As admitted in the High Court).
    Finally, get and read the book – “The Secret Courts” written by @Joe Burns. It is available on line. It will open your eyes.

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    Mute Joe Burns
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    Apr 18th 2017, 11:29 AM

    @Bernard Cantillon: can you be more specific about what you believe is “absolute and utter bollocks.” I will be happy to post links if the Journal doesn’t mind.

    As someone who has helped families for the last 10 years and been in case conferences and courts, you are the one talking bollox. I was in a court one day and after our case was heard, the HSE applied for a S13 order in respect to 3 children. The parents or their lawyer were not present, no evidence was presented and in the space of less than a minute it took for me to gather our papers and coats, the order was granted. If that had been done in a public court, Human and Civil Rights groups would have been up in arms. “Risk” is nothing more than crystal ball gazing, its the very method used by the Thought Police and Tusla. Do you think Gardai could get an arrest and detention warrant on the basis that someone may (or equally may not) rob a bank at some point in the future? The whole Risk Theory is complete and utter bollix, but you know this already, there are spaces in “Care” to be filled every time a child dies or ages-out.

    In another case which is now before the courts, the Supreme Court has granted an order for crimes by Gardai, social workers and their lawyers to be investigated. In short, 2 children were kidnapped by social workers on nothing more than a 3 minute conversation with the parents. The HSE/Tusla have already agreed damages in this case but are vigorously trying to block a Garda investigation. One of the subjects being investigated is a lying Psychologist who has perjured himself in several cases. Despite being caught lying, he is still used today by Tusla and he has never said anything nice about any parent. I have a whole list of “Hired Guns” who will be investigated.

    And lets have a look at Tusla Management. Gordon went and his contract wasn’t renewed. Does he have to come back for those 17 cases? And Fred McBride, didn’t he do well for himself after the Brandon Muir case? Freddie threatened to take me up a back alley and beat the crap out of me, in front of 3 witnesses only a week ago. Lets face it Bernard, you work for a criminal organisation who harm far more children than you help. Tusla hide behind the In Camera Rule as if it were intended to protect them, and not the children you purport to protect.

    You haven’t denied or debated anything because you haven’t a leg to stand on. Just the usual rhetoric, you just don’t like people saying bad things about your employer, even if they’re true. Not a word about the young lady in the story, or the hundreds of others who age-out every year and become “Emancipated”, a lovely euphemism for homelessness. And when this unfortunate young lady has children, will you take her children too? Statistically she is 66 times more likely to lose her child to “Care”, such is the risk seen by social workers. Wasn’t the whole purpose of taking her from her family that she have a better outcome? Do you think being homeless at 18 is better, or in her “Best Interests”? Why do 80% of “Cared For” children end up worse off as a result of “Care”?

    Here is a social worker telling the truth Bernard, something you don’t see very often. Educate yourself and find a position more suitable before Ryan Report Two is convened. Most good social workers leave after a year which is why the system is such a mess.

    https://youtu.be/c15hy8dXSps

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    Mute Jlocoroco
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    Apr 17th 2017, 12:17 PM

    This is because all landowners refuse rent allowance and only want ‘professionals’ over 24yrs. Pretty impossible for young people coming out of care to find a gaff

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    Mute Suzie Sunshine
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    Apr 17th 2017, 1:48 PM

    @Jlocoroco: we need to bring back the bed sits that young people were able to afford to stay in .. plus what happened to the days of housing sharing ? Renting a room in a house ..

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    Mute Noreen Kelleher
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    Apr 17th 2017, 4:18 PM

    There’s an after care system in place for young people’s leaving care. Some choose not to avail of it.

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    Mute IRL77
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    Apr 17th 2017, 10:32 AM

    People should question these stories before taking it as gospel.

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    Mute IRL77
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    Apr 17th 2017, 10:28 AM

    Does anyone get the feeling that some of these stories have the whiff of fakness about them?

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