One of Ireland’s more successful housing agencies celebrates 25 years

Sophia, a national provider of housing and homeless services, has begun marking its 25th anniversary this year by paying tribute to the role religious congregations have played in helping the homeless and Ukrainian refugees.

Sophia founder Sr Jean Quinn said it had supported hundreds of people, including families, to get out of homelessness but "this could not have been achieved without the vision and courage of the religious congregations". They "wanted to continue their social justice mission through Sophia", she said.

The religious congregations had also “been to forefront in the response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis by making the property they have available to house families fleeing the terror of war, and through Sophia they have enabled hundreds of people to move out of homelessness”, she said.

She is herself a member of the Daughters of Wisdom congregation.

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Since its foundation in 1997 Sophia has acted as a conduit for religious congregations in addressing homelessness by making their lands and property available for homes.

An example is one of Sophia's upcoming projects in Portlaoise town centre which will create 52 new homes there. The scheme involves the Department of Housing, Laois Co Council, the local parish and the Presentation Sisters' former Sacred Heart secondary school there and surrounding lands.

The former convent, which is a protected structure, will be converted into three one-bedroom apartments and six two-bedroom apartments. Three new apartment blocks will be built on-site which will incorporate 23 two-bedroom apartments and 10 one-bedroom apartments along with four two-bedroom town houses.

Over the next three years Sophia will grow by 60 per cent, building hundreds of new homes across Ireland for 546 people, including 86 families with 172 children.

Sophia is one of the largest providers of supported housing in Limerick. In Cork it has opened new homes while also providing supported housing in Clare, Kilkenny, Laois, Cork, and Sligo.

In Dublin it works with families who lived in emergency accommodation, such as hotels and hubs, but now have homes built to meet their needs.

Sophia’s 24-hours-a-day service in Dublin was recognised in 2019 as an example of European Best Practice in the European-funded project, Dignity and Well-Being. In Dublin it also has a project on Seán McDermott St.

At Cork St, and Donabate in Co Dublin, it provides on-site childcare. Cork St also has an award-winning cafe for Sophia residents.

Across Ireland Sophia owns or manages 365 homes and supports 1,034 people in their own homes. It focuses exclusively on helping people to leave homelessness by having a home of their own. It does not have hostels, shelters or family hubs etc, as it believes the solution to homelessness is not about providing a bed for the night but that people should have a home.