Tai Pawb Response to Welsh Government White Paper on Homelessness
Tai Pawb welcome the proposals and support the ambition in the Welsh Government White Paper to end homelessness in Wales. We were proud that our research which captured experiences of homelessness of people with protected characteristics was featured so heavily in the White Paper, influencing some of the recommendations. To be successful, it’s essential that changes moving forward consider the needs of all our communities in Wales, especially those who are overrepresented in the homeless system. Failure to do this will be costly and will mean we can’t achieve the goal everyone wants of ending homelessness.
You can read a copy of our full response here highlighting what EDI considerations we feel are necessary:
The White Paper was largely quiet on people with no recourse to public funding. We feel the Welsh Government should explore more options and look at practice elsewhere in the UK to look at innovative ways to support this group of people. Homelessness cannot be ended until better ways to support people with NRPF are identified.
We welcomed the inclusion of mandatory Accessible Housing Registers in the White Paper. Guidance on what these should include can be found from our research in Gwent.
To end homelessness, we need more funding. In the current climate, we are concerned that if these reforms were implemented without investment, specialist services targeting people with diverse needs may be cut leading to poorer outcomes from groups already overrepresented in homelessness populations.