Ireland is currently experiencing record levels of homelessness.
As homeless figures in Ireland topple 10,000 at least, An Post has launched a new service called Address Point, which will offer fixed addresses to the homeless.
Homelessness is fraught with many issues, including problems around receiving notices regarding medical appointments, being able to receive responses from potential employers or landlords, or even receiving things like birthday cards or information from family.
However, there are limitations to the new system. Post will be held for a maximum of 20 days, and packages cannot exceed 100 grams in weight — which is about the weight of a lemon. The service will be free of charge.
With help from charity and service outreach workers, homeless people can register for the Address Point service, which will generate a personalised collection point, which will serve as an address. Post can be collected from this point as long as the person can provide photo identification.
Roughly 200 post offices are participating in the programme nationally.
As of March 2019, there are officially 10,264 homeless people in Ireland, and many homeless charities suspect that the true number is even higher.
