Council leader says more housing must be built to prevent people from becoming homeless

Nicholas Thomas, local democracy reporter

More housing must be built in Newport to keep up with demand and prevent people from becoming homeless, the city council’s leader has said.

Cllr Dimitri Batrouni told cabinet colleagues this week there is “no point in hiding that” Newport is facing “acute” housing pressures.

A new report shows there were 150 more households in temporary accommodation last year than the council’s target.

It said law changes, along with gloomy economic conditions, have pushed more people towards homelessness or a risk of losing their properties, piling pressure on local authorities to keep a roof over their heads.

‘Record high’

A “record-high” 2,607 applications for homelessness assistance were received in Newport last year, even higher than during the emergency housing measures during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The city council, like others, is “reliant” on hotels and B&Bs as a stop-gap because of a “lack of suitable temporary accommodation”.

But this is expensive and only a short-term solution – and Cllr Batrouni told cabinet colleagues the council cannot tackle these housing pressures “alone” without more government support.

The council report acknowledges temporary accommodation “does not provide a satisfactory environment – particularly for children – and the associated cost pressures are unsustainable”.

Supported housing

The local authority says it has a “comprehensive programme” to reduce the number of people in temporary accommodation in the coming years, including freeing up space by helping residents to move on from supported housing to a permanent home.

The report shows the council negotiated £10.5m in funding to help pay for 95 new social homes last year, while another £18.4m has been earmarked for affordable housing in the city.

Newport is also one of six locations taking part in the Royal Foundation’s Homewards programme, which has pledged “innovative” new houses for homeless families.

Cllr Batrouni praised the work of the council’s housing team, which he said was under “enormous pressure” to deal with growing demand, and said more properties were the key to overcoming the current challenges.

“It comes down to building more houses,” he said. “We are the fastest growing city [in Wales] by a margin.”