Hundreds of children homeless for Christmas

A well-known actor has lent his voice to an urgent appeal to raise funds for over 200 children in Cork and Kerry who will be homeless this Christmas.

Irish actor, writer, and social justice advocate, Emmet Kirwan, has teamed up with national homeless charity Focus Ireland for the charity’s Christmas campaign No Child Without A Home.

The renewed call for donations comes following the release of the latest Department of Housing Homelessness Report which shows that 230 children are currently homeless in Cork and Kerry.

The report also revealed that 712 adults are currently living in emergency accommodation in Cork city and county, while 109 families across the South West Cork-Kerry region face Christmas without a home.

Overall, a record number of 5,274 children are now homeless across Ireland, a number Focus Ireland has condemned as being “totally unacceptable”, with many facing their second or third Christmas in emergency accommodation.

Mr Kirwan, who has starred alongside Hollywood actors such as James McAvoy and Anthony Hopkins, said: “No child should spend even one Christmas without a safe place to call home — let alone their second or third.

“Child homelessness is entirely preventable. We saw numbers fall during the eviction ban, and then rise when it ended, proving that political choices make a real difference,” he added.

Mr Kirwan went on to slam the current and previous governments for allowing homelessness to worsen.

He said: “It is shameful that successive governments have allowed this crisis to deepen. Homelessness, having reached this level, was something that was entirely preventable and it’s essentially due to political failure.”

Last year, Focus Ireland supported 4,500 children in 2,053 families who were homeless or at risk of homelessness. In the first 11 months of 2025, the charity supported 49 families in Cork and helped 190 families with 419 children out of homelessness.

Focus Ireland CEO Pat Dennigan, said: “As we face another Christmas with thousands of children without a home, one thing is absolutely clear: homelessness is not inevitable. It is the result of policy choices and is entirely preventable.

“That’s why we’re asking the public to stand with us by donating to Focus Ireland, to help us deliver our services and by demanding change from the Government through our petition.

“With political will and public support we can help families rebuild their lives and end homelessness for good,” he added.