SHELTER Cymru has welcomed the Senedd’s passing of Stage 4 of the Homelessness and Social Housing Allocations (Wales) Bill.

This was recently announced on Tuesday February 10, and it represents a landmark moment that has the potential to transform how Wales prevents and tackles homelessness.

Last year, more than 13,000 households in Wales experienced homelessness and, right now, more than 10,000 people are homeless and stuck living in unsuitable temporary accommodation.

One of Shelter Cymru’s clients, Lisa was made homeless in August 2022, changing both hers and her family’s life.

Lisa said that her and her then husband received a no-fault eviction from their private landlord after 15 years of living in the property he owned.

At the time Lisa was a university student, her husband at the time was working full time and said there hadn’t been any issues of missed rent, anti-social behaviour or other problems he was just looking to sell their home.

Lisa said this caused stress and uncertainty in her household, and after reaching out to a Housing Officer at her local council they said they did have an obligation to house them but there were lots of families who were also on the list.

“I kept in constant contact with the council, explaining to them how the situation was affecting the health and wellbeing of me and my children. It was the hardest at Christmastime when my younger asked, “how will Santa find us?”

“We had to live with this uncertainty for months and months.

“We were told that if we became homeless the family would likely be split up as my older children might not be considered part of our household and would be offered separate temporary accommodation.

“This is the time we needed to be together more than ever, not split apart.

“Living with this stress and worry every day affected all of our mental health.”

Lisa and her family were eventually offered a social home through a housing association and have been in the house since May 2023.

“I hope that this Bill will mean more people don’t have to through what we did.”

Shelter Cymru sees the impact of this every day in their advice surgeries and via their helpline where they helped over 12,000 households each year, across every local authority in Wales.

Shelter Cymru appreciates the work of the Welsh Government and Members of the Senedd from all parties in creating and refining this Bill.

Ruth Power, CEO Shelter Cymru, said: “Today, Wales has taken an important step towards achieving our shared ambition to make homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring.

“The Homelessness and Social Housing Allocations Bill has the potential to initiate transformative change in how we tackle homelessness in Wales.

“With thousands of people in Wales already homeless and trapped in temporary accommodation, it is vital that we seize the opportunity this Bill presents.”

“Shelter Cymru look forward to continuing to work with the Welsh Government and partners through the coming months and years to deliver on the opportunity for transformative change that this Bill represents.”