The number of Ukrainian people seeking refuge in Clare has dropped to its lowest level in a year-and-a-half.
New figures released by Clare County Council show the number of Ukrainians residing here is down 10% in the last 12 months.
As of March of this year, there are 5,061 Ukrainian Beneficiaries of Temporary Accommodation, or BOTPs, living in this county.
Of these, 1,264, or 25%, are being accommodated in 25 multi-occupancy facilities such as hotels, hostels and other buildings.
The local authority states the remainder are in residential settings in formal hosted arrangements through the Irish Red Cross and Offer-a-Home Scheme.
To date, a total of 518 Ukrainians who were originally living in multi-occupancy facilities in Clare have been relocated to residential settings following engagement with Clare County Council’s Matching and Relationship Manager.
The number of BOTPs in the county has fallen by 19 in the space of a month and a whole 535 in the last year.
This indicates a 10% reduction on April 2024 when 5,596 Ukrainians were living here which was the highest figure for this county since Russia’s invasion in February of 2022.
Last month’s figure is the lowest for Clare since November 2023 when it was hosting a total of 4,947 Ukrainian refugees.
