Senedd committee launches inquiry report on housing support for vulnerable people

We welcome the Local Government and Housing Committee's report released today on Housing support for vulnerable people. This is a result of the inquiry held earlier this year, in which CHC provided written and oral evidence.

The report details a range of important recommendations, which reflect the challenges our members have reported to us around funding certainty, lack of robust national data, partnership working at a local level, and workforce retention.

Commenting on the report’s launch, director of policy and external affairs, Rhea Stevens, said:

“This inquiry has been pivotal in demonstrating how housing support services have become stretched to their limit. The sector has been unequivocal in the investment required for improved data on housing needs to accurately establish a new base level of funding required, and to aid in the delivery of Rapid Rehousing transition plans.

We are pleased to see this view reflected in the Committee’s report, as well as support for continued ringfenced funding for the Housing Support Grant, and a multi-year funding commitment that would give services the stability and confidence they require to evolve to meet needs. We must now prioritise investment in the workforce and housing support services, as well as an increased supply of settled housing to deliver our shared ambition of making sure homelessness is rare, brief, and unrepeated.

We believe that the forthcoming Homelessness and Social Housing Allocation Bill presents an opportunity to enhance collaboration and address systemic issues in funding and service delivery. We look forward to working with the Committee further through their legislative scrutiny.”