Bed for a night ‘no good for Margaret’
HOMELESS mother of seven Margaret Cash turned down emergency accommodation last night because it was ‘totally unsuitable’.
Ms Cash and six of her seven children made headlines last week when photos emerged online of her children sleeping in Tallaght Garda station on Thursday.
The mother, originally from Tallaght and a member of the Traveller community, has been provided with temporary emergency accommodation by the Inner City Helping Homeless (ICHH) group since then.
Chief executive Anthony Flynn said Ms Cash was offered a room by South Dublin County Council for last night only but she turned it down.
‘It is totally unsuitable that she would have to transfer all her belongings to that unit for one night with seven children and then be made homeless again tomorrow and go through all the process again,’ Mr Flynn told The Irish Times.
‘You’re throwing these children back on to the streets in the morning to go through this process again.
‘This is what’s happened before. Margaret has gone through this process for a full year and that’s how she ended up in that situation.
‘What’s to say Margaret’s not going to end up in that situation this week if she’s only getting night-by-night offer? It’s not suitable to her needs.’
Mr Flynn said a more suitable offer of emergency accommodation would have been for at least a few days or a week.
The Dublin Region Homeless Executive said emergency accommodation was being offered to the family on a ‘continuous basis’ until an alternative could be found.
It added the Cash family would have to leave the premises at 10am each morning return each night.
‘We really appreciate how difficult this situation is for Ms Cash and her family and both the DRHE and SDCC are working very hard to find alternative emergency accommodation for them,’ a spokesman said.
‘Unfortunately considering the demands on the provision of emergency accommodation there is limited supply available to local authorities.’
Mr Flynn said his group will provide Ms Cash and her family with emergency accommodation until tomorrow before a review.
‘It’s upsetting for Margaret to go through the process that she’s going through,’ he added.
‘She’s ashamed at the fact that she’s homeless, she shouldn’t be but she is, and that she’s in this situation.’
‘It’s not suitable to her needs’