Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Housing Minister James Browne have published a new action plan to support children and families experiencing or at risk of homelessness, with implementation beginning immediately.

Called Aire, the cross-government plan contains 43 actions backed by an additional €20 million. It brings together housing, health, education, childcare, youth services and family support in an effort to improve coordination and prevent homelessness.

The plan was developed following consultation across government and with stakeholders, including children who have experienced homelessness.

Martin said: "'Aire' means to pay attention to or take special care of and this Action Plan is so named because children at risk of homelessness are a priority for us. Childhood does not pause while we build homes. It is made up of experiences and moments that shape a person for the rest of their life. We are committed to building the homes this country needs. But that commitment must be matched by what we do for children today.

"Children living in emergency accommodation have exactly the same rights as any other child - to an education, to a family life, to privacy, to sport and culture, and to reach their full potential. This Action Plan sets out new measures across health, education, housing, nutrition, child protection, youth services, and transport, each one designed to protect and support children and families."

Browne said: "Tackling homelessness and housing precarity is my priority as Minister. This Action Plan is a critical part of the wider response to homelessness and is founded on a clear principle: homelessness should be prevented wherever possible and, where it does occur, it should be rare, brief and non-recurring. "Child and family homelessness is not solely a housing issue. It impacts every aspect of a child's life and demands an urgent and coordinated response across Government and public services.

"It was crucial that any plan on this represented a genuinely whole-of-Government effort and this does. It has been shaped by the expertise and experience of frontline practitioners, local authorities, statutory agencies and advocacy organisations, and crucially by the lived experience and the voices of children and families who have experienced homelessness firsthand.

"We have to do better, and I am determined to move beyond the text on paper to getting on with what needs to be done to provide secure homes and places to grow up and grow old in."

The government said increasing housing supply was central to tackling homelessness. It said more than €9 billion in capital funding was being invested in social and affordable housing in 2026, alongside new tenancy protections. A record number of newly built social homes were delivered in 2025, and the government expects the figure to rise in 2026.

Aire has three pillars: preventing homelessness by helping families sustain tenancies; protecting children's wellbeing in temporary accommodation; and helping families move into secure, long-term housing as quickly as possible.

The government said it would advance the actions in the coming months, monitor delivery regularly and consider whether further measures were needed. The full plan is available at www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/publications/child-and-family-homelessness-action-plan/.