More people left ‘stuck’ in homelessness as Depaul sees 9pc rise in cases

The organisation helped 4,333 adults and children during 2018.

Depaul, which is a cross-Border charity, provided a total of 604 beds each night.

It also recorded an 18pc drop in 'move-ons' from its services, leaving people "stuck" in homelessness.

In addition, some 15 babies were born in to its services last year.

The charity launched its 2018 annual report yesterday, which also showed there was a significant rise in the number of suspected overdoses within its services last year.

It revealed that 60 lives were saved through the administration of naloxone, a life-saving antidote which reverses the effects of a drug overdose.

The number of suspected overdoses stood at 127, an 81pc increase on previous figures.

Director of services Dermot Murphy said: "It is clear from the amount of lives saved and suspected overdoses within our services that we are dealing with a growing drug problem."

He said another trend seen within its services was a marked rise in the use of crack cocaine.

Source: Irish Independent, 2nd October 2019