Novas Annual Report 2022

Annual Report 2022
NOVAS warmly welcomed the
publication of the Youth Homeless
Strategy in November 2022. As a
member of the Irish Coalition to End
Youth Homelessness, we had been
advocating for such a strategy for a
number of years. The coalition is an
association of 19 organisations across
the housing, homelessness and youth
sectors working together to end youth
homelessness.
In early 2022, in advance of the
strategy publication, NOVAS made a
detailed submission to the Department
of Housing, Local Government and
Heritage, as part of the consultation
phase of the strategy. We also contributed to the submission made by the
coalition, which represented the broad views of organisations working across
the sector and advocated particularly for ring-fenced housing for young
people as a means of preventing further homelessness and creating exit
pathways from emergency accommodation for this group. The government’s
commitment to developing Supported Housing for Youth (SHY) within the
strategy is most welcome and we look forward to the roll-out of this model of
housing in 2023.
NOVAS’ DIAL House residential and outreach services in Limerick and the
continued support for young adults leaving Bellevue House Children’s
Home in Dublin demonstrates our commitment to targeted interventions for
young people. These are effective services in preventing homelessness and
preparing young people to live independent lives in the community
with strong social support networks.
52