MORE than 100 people in Limerick and Galway are getting newly outfitted homes while housing advocates are also getting a significant boost for their work thanks to an anonymous donation in a will.
The Fr Peter McVerry Trust and Threshold are together receiving €1.5 million from the legacy gift to The Community Foundation for Ireland.
The McVerry Trust will outfit 14 modular units in Moyross in Limerick with a further 32 homes being outfitted across County Galway. The projects represent some of the most extensive undertaken by the homeless charity.
The outfitting will include the provision of furniture and other supports to help individuals and families settle into their new home. The McVerry Trust has a tenancy sustainment rate of 86 per cent for tenants who move into a home under its Housing First initiative.
Threshold is being supported to undertake a number of initiatives including its campaign to have the right to housing included in the Constitution; the introduction of a deposit protection scheme and increased security of tenure for private tenants.
Chief Executive of The Community Foundation for Ireland said legacy gifts to charity remain low, accounting for only six per cent of charitable giving in Ireland, which highlights the scale and generosity of this gift.
“This donation also highlights what philanthropy can achieve and contribute. It is now time for Government to grow this type of giving in Ireland by delivering a long-promised National Policy on Philanthropy,” she added.
“Philanthropic giving is different. It not only responds to immediate need it also has a longer-term view with a focus on solutions. We see that with this donation.
“By partnering this anonymous legacy gift with the Peter McVerry Trust, we are in a position to offer a home to more than 100-people. This on its own is a significant achievement. However, our donor is also supporting initiatives with Threshold which have the potential to change the housing debate in Ireland forever.
“The partnership with Threshold will increase protection for tenants which for too long has been lacking, or in some cases does not exist at all,” Ms Charlton explained.
Peter McVerry Trust chief executive Pat Doyle said the funding would enable them to help over 100 people move into a high-quality social housing unit with ongoing support from the Peter McVerry Trust tenant support team.
Threshold chief executive said that the direct benefit of the legacy will be the re-development of its Housing Advice centres in Dublin and Galway and it would contribute to the creation of an entirely new service and advice centre in Limerick.
“It will also mean that we can significantly expand our advocacy and campaigning work, enabling us to create more positive change for those renting their homes in Ireland, and realising a fairer, more affordable and higher quality Private Rented Sector – positively impacting all of the 300,000 rented homes in Ireland”.
