Census of Population 2022 Profile 6 - Homelessness

The following audio files contain quotes from CSO Statistician Sheelagh Bonham about Census 2022 Profile 6 Homelessness.

Media outlets have permission to use the clip as long as they credit the CSO.

Homeless People in Ireland

There were 10,321 people counted as homeless in Census 2022. Of these, 60% were male and 40% were female.

The Dublin region accounted for more than two-thirds of the homeless population, while the North-West region of Sligo, Donegal and Leitrim had the lowest level of homelessness at around 1%.

Average Age

In general, people who were homeless tended to be much younger than the national average age.

Among the homeless population in Census 2022, the average age was 29.5 years, while for the general population, it was 38.8 years. Around a third of people who were homeless were under the age of 20 and only 4% were aged 60 or over.

Families and Family Structure

Just over 5,000 people who were counted as homeless in Census 2022 were in family units, which is almost half of the homeless population. 

94% of these families had children and of these, 31% had one child, 28% had two children, while 18% had four or more children.