Cardiff Council is set to buy another hotel and student accommodation to make more room for homeless people in the city. The demand for housing in Cardiff is currently outstripping supply, with emergency accommodation already at full capacity. At a recent Cardiff Council community and adult services scrutiny committee meeting, the situation was described as “extremely worrying” by one councillor. Council officers shared that the early release of prisoners is also adding strain to the council’s homelessness service.
The council is on the brink of acquiring a student accommodation building comprising 103 apartments, a hotel with over 150 units, and a 20-bed house of multiple occupation. Cabinet members will deliberate on approving the acquisition plans at a meeting scheduled for Thursday, September 26. Cardiff Council, which currently has exclusive use of five hotels, had previous proposals for land and property purchase to ease housing pressure thwarted last year.
However, the council’s assistant director of development and regeneration, David Jaques, informed the scrutiny committee that negotiations for the new properties are in advanced stages this time, with draft terms agreed for all three acquisitions. Presently, approximately 8,000 people are on the council’s housing waiting list. If all the properties anticipated for completion this year are acquired, the council will add over 450 council homes, with a mix of new builds and property purchases.
Jane Thomas, the council’s director of adults, housing, and communities, expressed that the purchase of the hotel could proceed swiftly if approved by the cabinet. She noted a potential delay in acquiring the student accommodation due to the current tenants but expects the other two purchases to be expedited. A recent council consultation on homelessness, which attracted nearly 2,900 respondents, examined proposals regarding accommodation offers outside Cardiff and allowing accommodation allocation based on availability rather than individual choice.
Councillor Lynda Thorne, the council’s cabinet member for housing, emphasised the need for sensitivity in addressing homelessness issues, particularly for families residing in prolonged hotel accommodation. Each case is evaluated individually, with opportunities for review of accommodation offers. The council is striving to bridge the housing gap and expedite the delivery of new homes in collaboration with housing association partners and private developers.