*Tim Morris shows all the correspondence he has had with the Co Council, HSE and Focus Ireland for help with his housing situation, pictured with partner Stephanie Fitzgibbon and their 4 yr old daughter Emily and 2 year old son Ciaran who are currently living in his mothers house in Bridgetown, Co Clare. Photograph: Natasha Barton
A SOUTH-EAST CLARE family without a home of their own are on the brink of purchasing a campervan to house its four members who have been couch surfing for the past fortnight.
At the beginning of July, Tim Morris and his partner Stephanie Fitzgibbon were refused in their application to the Department of Social Protection for an exceptional needs payment and have been unsuccessful in their efforts to be placed in emergency accommodation by Clare County Council. They exceeded the threshold for this having claimed for the working family payment.
“We didn’t know that by claiming working family payment we’d exceed threshold. From March to May, we claimed it and we stopped when we found out it would exceed. So many families are doing it to keep a roof over their head. If they do it, one of them will lose a job or be homeless,” he warned.
Prior to Tim losing his job in September of last year, the family had been renting in the private market at a cost of €1000 per month for two years. The family of four is now living off his wife’s income, since May she has worked in Uniphar in Annacotty.
He explained, “As long as I stay with family and friends, we can’t claim the working family payment. I emailed social welfare looking for this payment but they said we cannot qualify unless my partner reduces her working hours, if she does that, she’d be let go”. There is a risk that Stephanie will have to “walk away from a lifetime job” in order to aid their chances of getting help, Tim lamented.
Speaking to The Clare Echo, the Bridgetown man explained that if they lived in Limerick they would be able to claim the exceptional needs payment but he flagged that different thresholds exist for Co Clare. “They tried to push us to go to Limerick, we figured out Limerick won’t accept us and Clare County Council won’t be able to house us because of the housing crisis. There should be one set threshold across the board,” he said.
Rising costs of living is making matters more difficult for the family, “We currently have two kids in crèche, we will have to pull them out of there to save costs, we’re going to have to take one car off the road, we have to cut everything. We can’t afford to buy any new clothes and we’re unable to avail of any help”.
Letters have been sent to Tusla to try further their cause in securing emergency accommodation but no joy has been experienced as they have been unable to get a referral from the local authority. “The Council are at full capacity, they won’t give us help to get into a hotel for emergency accommodation. Our solicitor is baffled”.
“At the minute we’re jumping from house to house, we’re couch surfing for over a week,” he said. Though currently residing at his mother’s house in Bridgetown, they have also had to sleep in their car and are conscious that the health and mobility issues of his mother means their current arrangement is strictly short-term. “She won’t let us sleep on the street but she doesn’t want us there, it’s not good for our family”.
Morris continued, “Our next option is to buy a caravan and plonk it outside my mother’s driveway because at the minute we’re in a three-bed small house with myself and my partner plonked into a box room the size of a small car”. He stated, “I’m upset, frustrated and angry. It’s wrong, we have all the Ukrainians are coming and getting accommodation but we’re being left with nothing. We have no options, go homeless or go nowhere, if I go back to work I can’t avail of HAP, if we tried to rent we’d be in a bigger hole. It’ll be Sept before I get on Council list, unless we find property we can’t claim the emergency needs payment, then we would only be claiming to pay HAP”.
Outlining his hopes for his family, Tim said he is not looking for a Council home, “My long-term goal is to be able to provide for my family, to be able to put a roof over their heads and give them somewhere to sleep”.
In a statement to The Clare Echo, a spokesperson for Clare County Council explained that income limits are set out in the Social Housing Assessment Regulations. “If an applicant household’s income exceeds the limit as set out in the Social Housing Assessment Regulations, the applicant household does not qualify to be included on the qualified Social Housing List. This assessment is made by considering the applicant household’s qualifying income for the 52 weeks prior to the date of submission of their Housing Application. Clare County Council has no discretion in considering the applicant household’s income against these nationally set income bands. The limit for Limerick City and County Council is higher than the Clare limit and applicants can apply to one local authority only”.
“Homeless emergency accommodation in Clare is currently at capacity however we continuously review capacity and need based on emerging circumstances. Availability of emergency accommodation has been an acute issue in Clare since March 2022, to that end HAT must prioritise emergency accommodation based on presenting need. Priority is given to those in medical or other agency service who need to be moved on to free up space for more acute needs. We endeavour to support those homeless or at risk of homelessness to secure private rented accommodation or support from family to tide them over. The issue of access to accommodation for the ‘squeezed middle’ is a regular topic for discussion in the Council chamber with many commitments sought to seek to support changes in regulation to support those in need”.
