A mother living in Ireland's largest homeless family hub with her young son has secured a home following an appeal which was aired on RTÉ's Upfront with Katie Hannon programme.
Chloe Coffey and her four-year-old son Jackson, who has complex medical needs, had been living at Houben House in Dublin’s Harold’s Cross since June 2024.
She first shared their story on Upfront in November, describing the toll homelessness had taken on them.
"I don’t even want to get up in the mornings; I’m constantly crying, and the baby is wondering why his Mammy is always upset. It’s majorly affecting his behaviour," Ms Coffey told the programme at the time.
On last Monday’s programme, she made a fresh appeal, saying her situation had not changed and that she was "more desperate" than ever.
In the days after her appearance she received unexpected news.
"We got a phone call this morning from Tuath Housing [approved housing body]," she told Upfront: The Podcast.
"I was actually on my way to the school with Jackson and we got a phone call asking would we like to accept a two-bedroom apartment and there was no doubt about it – we dived on it," she added.
Watch: Upfront with Katie Hannon: Ireland's largest family homeless hub
Ms Coffey was offered a Choice Based Letting (CBL). Unlike the traditional housing allocation process - where homes are assigned based on a first come, first serve ranking - CBL allows eligible applicants on the social housing waiting list who have expressed an interest in a specific geographical area and meet the eligible criteria, they can be offered the property.
While she doesn't have a clear timeframe of when they’ll be moving in, she has already seen the property.
"I’ve done like a virtual viewing of Daft and we’re just over the moon with it, absolutely thrilled," she said.
Ms Coffey said the apartment will be life-changing for her and her son, who is facing into a third significant surgery in the coming months.
"We’ll have a kitchen; we’ll be able to cook proper meals and he’ll be able to have his family and friends over. The main thing I’m so happy (about is) he has somewhere to come home to after hospital – that was the main goal".
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Jackson’s upcoming open-heart surgery is scheduled to happen in either March or April, according to his mother who said their new housing arrangement will help with his recovery.
"We’re looking at a 13-hour surgery, recovery is even longer again, so we’re very grateful to have this home to bring him home to," she said.
Ms Coffey is also thrilled about the area their new home will be.
"His surgery was the main thing we were worried about but as well his behaviour and other things have changed a lot since we came to the hub. I’m hoping I get my little Jackson back that I once had before I came here."
Joining his mother on Upfront: The Podcast, Jackson also chimed in on the news.
"I got a house," he told Katie Hannon.
He said he was excited and revealed that he plans to paint his bedroom "purple and green".
Houben House
While Ms Coffey says she's thrilled to be finally moving on from Houben House, she is also complimentary of the people who run the service where she has lived since June of last year.
Anthony Byrne, service manager at Houben House, which is run by the Salvation Army, welcomed the news for Ms Coffey and Jackson.
"It's fantastic," he said.
"Chloe was offered a choice-based lettings property from Dublin City Council. It’s a social home, but just a different pathway to getting there," added Mr Byrne, who also appeared on Upfront: The Podcast.
"You can move up the list if a property is deemed more suitable for you than for someone ahead of you," Mr Byrne explained.
Following Ms Coffey’s latest appearance on Upfront, her case was raised in the Dáil last Tuesday, where Taoiseach Micheál Martin acknowledged that it was "not acceptable that so many people in our society are in emergency housing accommodation, particularly children."
He added that the Government would maintain a "strong and continuing focus on social housing"—something Mr Byrne hopes will become reality.
"That's what we all want, and it sounds great, but I’d like to actually see it," he said. "I don’t have an answer for how Micheál Martin can do it better or faster - that’s his job - but I’d love to see it happen."
One area Mr Byrne believes could help ease housing issues is the approach to tackling dereliction.
"The issue is the number of derelict properties - there are still so many," Mr Byrne said.
"The best solutions we see involve refurbishing and repurposing derelict properties. These homes are then put back on the market or added to the choice-based lettings system."
"The properties exist, so in many cases, there’s no need for rezoning or new planning permissions. That’s been working well."
Emotional connection
While running homeless services is Mr Byrne's profession, he admitted that it is impossible not to get emotionally involved - especially when working with families like Ms Coffey and Jackson.
"I’m a human being. When you’re dealing with children, how do you not get emotionally involved?" he said. "I see these children more than I see my own."
"The phone calls and the cheering today for little Jackson - how could you not feel that? You wouldn’t be human if you didn’t."
Listen to Chloe and Anthony speaking to Katie Hannon on Upfront: The Podcast here, on Apple Podcasts and on Spotify.
Watch Upfront with Katie Hannon on Monday at 10.35pm on RTÉ One and the RTÉ Player.
