No floor space for children to crawl: new research reveals lasting damage of prolonged congregated living in Ireland’s protection system

Today, refugee and migrant rights organisation Doras is launching new research, The Reception Gap: Permanent International Protection Accommodation versus Emergency Accommodation, which examines and compares living conditions in IPAS permanent and emergency accommodation. 

While permanent centres have faced scrutiny in recent years, emergency accommodation, which now houses the majority of international protection applicants, remains largely unexamined, weakly regulated, and without independent oversight.

John Lannon, Doras’ CEO said, “Emergency accommodation was meant to be temporary, used only when there was a surge in applicants. Instead, it has become the status quo. The absence of HIQA inspections has created a two-tier system of oversight, where substandard conditions are normalised for some residents, while others benefit from better governance. This regulatory and inspection gap must be closed as a matter of urgency.”

Drawing on a national survey, peer-led focus groups, and stakeholder interviews, the research documents a system marked by dysfunction, harmful practices, and systemic failures.

The impact on residents is evident throughout the report. One survey respondent described the impact on family life: “There’s often no floor space for children to crawl or learn to walk.”

Lannon continued, “The hospitality sector has been managing accommodation and many aspects of life for people who have gone through traumatic experiences unimaginable to most of us. They are not hotel guests – these are children, men and women who need trauma-informed, trained staff to support their integration needs. The system is simply not fit for purpose.”

Lead researcher, Professor Ciara Smyth, said, “Everyone seeking international protection should have access to the same standard of accommodation, safeguards and supports. We hope this research contributes to the urgent reforms needed, particularly as Ireland prepares to implement the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum. If these issues are left unaddressed, there is a real risk that the shortcomings of Direct Provision could not only be repeated but further entrenched under the new legal and policy framework.”

Doras is calling for:

• All accommodation housing international protection applicants to fall within the scope of inspections by HIQA, in line with permanent centres, and be subject to National Standards and the Public Sector Equality and Human Rights Duty.
• Emergency accommodation to be used strictly as a last resort, where an unforeseeable surge in demand temporarily exceeds supply, never as a routine or default component of the reception system.
• All IPAS accommodation to be delivered within a social care framework and supported by a suitably qualified and professionally regulated workforce.