New figures released by the Department of the Environment yesterday show that over 1,000 children are now homeless in the State.
This is an increase by 22 percent since January of this year.
The figures showed that there was 3,081 homeless people in the Republic of Ireland in March , including 1,054 children.
The greater Dublin area has twice as many homeless people as the rest of the country. More than half of the families who are homeless are single-parent families.
It noted that in the period from February to March, the number of adults seeking emergency accommodation increased by 111 while among children the figure had risen by 116.
Niamh Randall, national spokeswoman for the Simon Communities, said the figures showed the situation was worsening for vulnerable people.
“These latest emergency accommodation figures from March are of grave concern to us and to the people we support across the country every day.”
Minister for the Environment, Alan Kelly, has asked local authorities in Dublin allocate half their new housing facilities to the homeless and has directed other local authorities in cities around Ireland to set aside similar quotas