West Pier

Accommodation belonging to a group of Travellers at the West Pier, Dun Laoghaire, was burned down in 2004, and Crosscare’s Dun Laoghaire Night Service at Tivoli Road was asked to fill the gap while new accommodation arrangements were put into place. As a result of the Traveller group staying in the Crosscare Night Service, staff established a very positive relationship with them, as a result of which Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council later asked Crosscare to oversee arrangements for the new accommodation provision at the West Pier for the Travellers. While this group is no longer homeless, Crosscare has maintained a level of care and oversight on behalf of DLRCoCo.

The West Pier Project has four main aims:

1. To meet the basic needs of nutrition, hygiene and health.
2. To introduce stability to the group.
3. To assist service users to identify their own needs and become further involved in addressing them for themselves.
4. To address their drinking patterns.

The project seeks to adopt links with otheragencies both local and national. A pro-active approach is being taken to assist and promote projects similar to the West Pier Project and to improve our own service.

All of this is in keeping with the mission statement of our homeless services. New challenges clarify how we implement our mission statement and allow for a great learning experience for all involved.