Homelessness is a significant challenge in Northern Ireland. Between 2012 and 2017 the number of households classified as homeless increased by 32 percent. Nearly 12,000 households were legally accepted as homeless in 2016–17 . Resolving this complex issue requires a co-ordinated multiagency, approach.

The Housing Executive is legally responsible for helping homeless people and preventing homelessness in Northern Ireland. Its publication the latest NIHE Homelessness Strategy of 2022–27: Ending Homelessness Together Homelessness Strategy 2022-27 (nihe.gov.uk) outlines the overall vision for eliminating long-term homelessness and rough sleeping, with prevention and early intervention at its core.

Education - Awareness - Prevention

The Housing Executive developed its homelessness strategy in partnership with the Department for Communities, statutory agencies and voluntary and community sector organisations. This strategy aims to ensure a cross-departmental and inter-agency approach to ending homelessness, which includes education.

Education plays a vital role in raising awareness and equipping pupils with the knowledge, skills and resilience to avoid homelessness. This resource aims to empower the next generation of young people to take action to prevent homelessness in the future. It caters for Key Stages 1 to 4, providing lessons and activities to support you to teach pupils about the local and broader issues of homelessness in an age-appropriate manner.

This part of our website will keep you up to date with the latest developments in homelessness in Northern Ireland and give you an opportunity to engage with us on this important social issue.