The number of homeless children in Ireland has once again reached a record high.

There were 3,821 children living in emergency accommodation in the last week of March, along with 6,484 adults. That amounted to 10,305 people, including 1,733 families, in need of shelter. This represents a "slight increase" on February's numbers, said Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy. The west was the area with the biggest increase in child homelessness, with 17 children becoming homeless in March. Reacting to the figures, Minister Murphy pointed out that the number of people sleeping rough in the capital this spring is actually down on the figures for last winter. That's according to a rough sleeper count taken on 9 and 10 April. Focus Ireland has said however that the homelessness crisis is only "deepening" and said that nothing would change without a change in government policy. Barnardos meanwhile called for all homeless children to have access to a support worker due to the trauma of their situation. This latest development comes after the number of homeless people in Ireland hit 10,000 for the first time in February. , Focus Ireland described this as a "human crisis."