The number of children who are homeless and living in emergency accommodation has exceeded 5,000 for the first time.
Figures published by the Department of Housing show there are now 5,014 children without a home and living in State-provided accommodation.
The figures also show that the country's homeless population, those accessing emergency accommodation, reached 16,058 last month.
This compares to 15,915 in June.
The 5,014 figures of child homelessness is a rise of 56 on the previous month, when the figure was 4,958.
Focus Ireland said it was "truly shocking" that homelessness has nearly doubled in four years, from 8,132 people homeless in July 2021 to 16,058 in July this year.
Read more: Homelessness is very tough, says Dublin mother of four
Its Chief Executive Pat Dennigan said it was awful that the figure had risen to over 5,000 during the same week that children go back to school, adding that 5,000 was "the equivalent of 220 primary school classes of children who are homeless".
"Many went back to school from the stress of living in emergency homeless accommodation. We believe that no child should be without a home," Mr Dennigan said.
"Homelessness hurts everyone and it hurts children the most. We need to end child homelessness. For good."
Executive Director of Simon Ber Grogan said the organisation is seeing "increasing demand" for services.
"Increasing numbers of people looking for whether that's emergency accommodation or access to the food bank or some of the different services that are provided by people across the country," she said
Ms Grogan said one of Simon's services is prevention of people entering emergency accommodation and that it has been asking the Government and in particular the Dept of Public Expenditure and Reform to prioritise homeless prevention measures in Budget 2026.
"We need exits from homelessness but we need to stop the vast numbers of people being forced to experience the trauma of homelessness every year," she said.
Sinn Féin's spokesperson on social protection Louise O'Reilly said the figures are a "damning indictment" of the Government.
"They have utterly failed," she said.
Social Democrats hosing spokesperson Rory Hearne said the "grim milestone" should "shame us as a society".
"We are talking about people, not just numbers – behind these bleak statistics lie harrowing stories of human hardship and suffering.
He added: "Having to live in substandard accommodation is affecting the wellbeing and futures of these children. The real tragedy is that child homelessness is not inevitable – it is the direct result of policy choices made by the Government."
Labour's housing spokesperson Conor Sheehan said the fact that over 5,000 children are homeless for the first time is a "national scandal" and he said he believes the real number is much higher because of hidden homelessness that is not captured by the official figures.
Mr Sheehan said that when children enter homelessness their childhood is "robbed from them".
"They have worse outcomes across all levels, whether it be mental health, whether it be education, whether it be societal," he said.
Mr Sheehan said people living in emergency accommodation have compared it to prison, "and that's what we're condemning these 5,014 children to".
"What I would add is this, it's 5,014 children that we know of, the real figure, the hidden homeless ... it is an awful lot higher," added Mr Sheehan.
