The annual sleepout of Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) and Trinity Free Legal Advice Centre (FLAC), scheduled to take place tomorrow night, has been postponed after an orange weather warning was issued earlier today.
A statement on the union’s Facebook page said: “We are hoping to reschedule the event for next week, but we will confirm this in the next day or two.”
In an email statement to The University Times, TCDSU Citizenship Officer Niamh McKay, who is helping to organise the event, said: “We are certain it will be just as much of a success next week and are very excited.”
This event would have marked the fourth year of the sleepout, which was set up to raise money for the Peter McVerry Trust and raise awareness of the homelessness crisis in Dublin. Last year, the sleepout took place on November 2nd in Front Arch.
To partake in the event, students are typically asked to raise €50 for the Peter McVerry Trust in advance of the sleepout, and bucket collections usually take place on the night.
Housing and homelessness have in recent times become major issues, particularly in Dublin. In the last few months, members of Take Back Trinity have occupied several vacant buildings around Dublin to highlight the issue. In September, Conchúir Ó Raidaigh, a Trinity student, was arrested during the forceful eviction of a property on North Frederick St.
In yesterday’s Budget 2019, the government allocated €1.25 billion for the delivery of 10,000 new social houses.
