About Dublin Simon Community

Dublin Simon Community was established in 1969 by a group of students from Trinity College and UCD who formed our first Soup Run, which operates year-round to this day, providing much needed hot soup and sandwiches to people sleeping rough on the streets of Dublin.

Over the last 55 years our services have expanded to support people at risk of and experiencing homelessness across counties Dublin, Kildare, Wicklow, Meath, Louth, Cavan and Monaghan. We work to prevent and address homelessness by providing a full range of wraparound services including housing, prevention, addiction treatment, emergency response, and other targeted interventions.

Dublin Simon Community is preventing and ending homelessness for people everyday through our wraparound services:

• Tenancy Sustainment – Homelessness Prevention:

  Dublin Simon Community’s tenancy sustainment teams operate a variety of supports and services. Our teams support people with every aspect of finding and moving into a tenancy, managing their current tenancy or moving to a new tenancy should their existing one be inappropriate to their needs.

• Outreach and Emergency Services:

  We began in 1969 as a Soup Run service, which continues to operate to this day, 365 nights of the year. Our assertive Outreach service engages daily with rough sleepers presenting complex needs, supporting them into temporary homeless accommodation. Our supported temporary emergency accommodation provides needs-based support, with clients receiving designated key-working and wraparound supports.

• Clinical and Therapeutic Services:

  We provide a range of homeless-specific health and addiction treatment services, which support our clients by addressing medical and recovery needs so that they may be empowered to move on to a place they can call home. These services include detox, blood borne virus services, counselling, primary care, recovery and aftercare.

• Supported Housing:

  We provide stable long-term accommodation for clients needing medium to high levels of supports in areas including physical health, mental health or addiction. Residents have access to a keyworker to support their specific needs.

• Independent Housing:

  Delivering permanent homes to individuals and families to exit homelessness and live independently. Our team sources appropriate and affordable accommodation to meet our clients needs and support them to settle into their new homes and sustain their tenancy.

• Client Development:

  Focused on achieving quality of life outcomes for our clients. We believe meaningful activities are central to providing structure, purpose, wellbeing, intellectual stimulation, self-esteem, socialisation and independence in the lives of people using our services. Our Client Development service works with our clients on areas including education, employability pathways, literacy, health & wellbeing, and personal development.

With the support of the Dragons at the Docks, Dublin Simon Community have been able to provide homes and end homelessness for more than 50 people and families.