Date: 5 September 2018
Time: 4-6pm
Venue: IHREC, 16 - 22 Green Street, Rotunda, Dublin 7
Mercy Law Resource Centre is launching its third ‘Right to Housing Report: Children & Homelessness – A Gap in Legal Protection’.
This report explores the reality in Ireland that there is no constitutional or statutory right to shelter for homeless children in families. Local Authorities have a discretion but no duty to provide emergency accommodation for children in families. This report considers potential legal protections available to children who are homeless. It outlines the attempts to rely on the courts to vindicate the rights of homeless children which have proven broadly ineffective due to the fact that there is no right to shelter in Irish law. The report also identifies the lack of legal aid for housing and homelessness matters, which ensures that accessing legal advice and representation for homeless families is extremely difficult in the first instance. The report also examines non-judicial forms of redress, and considers the role of The Children’s Ombudsman, and the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. The final section of the report considers best practices for legally protecting homeless children in other jurisdictions such as Scotland, England and France. This report outlines and proposes potential domestic legal reforms in light of the evidenced research and provides clear recommendations that could be used as a guideline to fill Ireland’s gap in legal protection for children experiencing homelessness.
The report will be formally launched by the Ombudsman for Children Dr Niall Muldoon.
Presentations will also be given by:
Tanya Ward, CEO of Childrens Rights Alliance
Joe Corr, President of Irish Planning Institute
Mike Allen, Director of Advocacy, Focus Ireland
Ursula Kilkenny, Director of the UCC Child Law Clinic and Dean of the School of Law, UCC
Please RSVP by Monday 3rd of September
By email to events@mercylaw.ie or 01 4537459.