Families and children in an IPAS centre in Killarney are living in overcrowded and inadequate accommodation.
That’s according to the latest HIQA report, following an unannounced two-day inspection of Atlas House Killarney in January (26th and 27th January).
The provider, Onsite Facilities Management Ltd, is reported to have repeatedly escalated concerns about room sizes and occupancy levels to IPAS.
Inspectors found the provider had directly addressed as many areas of non-compliance as it could locally, and that it was trying to address the outstanding problems by liaising with the relevant government departments.
Atlas House Killarney provides accommodation for families and single women.
Residents spoke well of the staff and inspectors found occupants received friendly and reliable support.
HIQA found residents generally reported being happy living there.
The IPAS centre was deemed compliant in eleven of the standards against which it was assessed, substantially compliant in seven, partially compliant in three, and non-compliant in three more.
The health watchdog inspectors found there were only three working washing machines and three tumble dryers for the 89 people living in the centre on the day.
They also found that families were sharing cramped bedrooms without separate living spaces.
Some children aged 10 or older were sharing rooms with parents and younger siblings of the opposite gender, including teenagers.
Inspectors stated the accommodation did not provide “adequate privacy” and was “crowded and cluttered.”
A designated children’s playroom was being used as office space.
HIQA said the building configuration did not provide enough space either in bedrooms or communal areas, and inspectors considered a satisfactory solution “unfeasible” without major structural changes or reduced occupancy.
The report found that 20 residents, or more than 1-in-5 (22%), had already received refugee or other protection status, but were still living in the centre due to difficulties securing housing elsewhere.
The watchdog concluded that, despite residents’ basic needs being met, accommodation standards still fell short of providing them with a comfortable and dignified living environment.
