Latest news with #AoifeRoseO'Brien
Irish Independent
30-05-2025
- Health
- Irish Independent
Wexford mental health group hosts its first meeting in County Hall – ‘Everyone experiencing difficulty must be supported'
At their inaugural meeting on Friday last, the ten councillors (Aidan Browne, Aoife Rose O'Brien, Craig Doyle, Frank Staples, Jackser Owens, Leonard Kelly, Mary Farrell, Michael Sheehan, Raymond Shannon and Tom Forde) selected Cllr Aoife Rose O'Brien as the chairperson of the newly-established Mental Health Services Working Group. "I am truly honoured to be appointed as chairperson for this working group,' said Cllr O'Brien. 'Mental health is a priority issue for me, I have lost friends to suicide and suffered greatly with my own mental health, and sadly this is not unique. I am not ashamed to admit that I have struggled; mental health is a part of whole health and at times I believe we all suffer. "For me the priority now is to ensure that every person experiencing difficulty is supported; whether that's access to talk-therapy, or psychiatric availability in times of crisis. As a county we have been failed to date and denied these crucial services. We have been reliant on local charity providers, whose commitments to our communities will never go unnoticed, but it's time for the HSE to step up." Describing the rest of the committee as 'incredibly strong members, many of whom have experienced their own suffering', Cllr O'Brien said she and the group would now be focusing on delivering what Wexford needs: a 24/7 mental health crisis unit. 'In addition, we will work on other areas of service, including Child Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAHMS) and residential care units. It's time for us to come together now and deliver for the people of Wexford.'
Irish Independent
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Wexford chief exec admits council needs to ‘get our hands on more land and up our housing delivery in villages'
There may be only three members of Sinn Féin among Wexford's 34 councillors, but they were determined to make their presence felt, and voices heard, at a special meeting held to discuss housing delivery in the county. Prior to the meeting, held in County Hall, Sinn Féin's Tom Forde, Aoife Rose O'Brien, and Craig Doyle, submitted a number of questions to chief executive of WCC Eddie Taaffe regarding ongoing housing issues in Wexford. The first of these focused on the target set by the government's Housing For All plan which requires WCC to deliver 1150 social houses in the county between 2022-26. With the council expected to surpass that target by 30 per cent, the Sinn Féin representatives asked Mr Taaffe if that target was too low.
Irish Independent
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
No guarantees that Wexford families ineligible for housing scheme will receive offer of emergency accommodation
Following changes to the conditions of the tenant-in-situ scheme, previously eligible families across Co Wexford are now facing eviction and possible homelessness. The scheme, which allows county councils to buy rented properties from private landlords so that tenants can continue to live there, was altered at the beginning of the year with the criteria for eligibility tightened. As a result, many of those previously awaiting confirmation of their acceptance onto the scheme are now ineligible and no longer qualify for this support. And in a further blow, it has been confirmed that some of these families will not receive any support from Wexford County Council (WCC) if and when they are evicted. Speaking at the April meeting of the Rosslare Municipal District (RMD) Councillor Aoife Rose O'Brien said she had been 'devastated' to learn that the council will not even provide emergency accommodation for some of those no longer eligible for the tenant-in-situ scheme. 'I have contacted one of the council officials and was extremely disappointed with one of the answers to my questions; it was confirmed to me that only in some cases will an ineligible tenant receive an offer of emergency accommodation or be offered any further supports,' said the Sinn Féin councillor. 'These tenants have been in limbo for eight months now, in some cases they're still awaiting a response (to their tenant-in-situ applications) on whether they're eligible and the purchase will go ahead. I appreciate this is not the fault of the council, this is down to the exiting government, but we have to honour the people who were waiting, whose landlords had been told the tenant would be able to purchase further down the line. "They're facing eviction now, as a local authority we need to address this and find a proper solution for those families.' Housing officer Sharon Ryan said WCC tried to 'accommodate people who haven't been approved under tenant-in-situ scheme' and that anyone who is on the social housing list was eligible for supports like Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) or the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS). 'I'm surprised you were told there would be no homeless services available,' she continued, 'the only instance I can think of (where this would happen) was if someone was in arrears. But even in those cases we would work with those people.' In an email seen by The Wexford People, a county council official responded to Cllr O'Brien's concerns regarding those now deemed ineligible for the tenant-in-situ scheme. "As in all cases where a household is facing homelessness, the Homeless Services and Support Unit will work with them to identify options and offer supports, which includes access to emergency accommodation in some cases,' the email reads. 'In cases where a household /property is not eligible for acquisition, we provide landlords alternative options for consideration including HAP and RAS. 'The households that are currently ineligible will likely not receive an offer of full social housing at this time due to many other households having longer time on the list.'
