ONE in three people in Wales have been impacted by the housing emergency, a charity has revealed.

Research conducted on behalf of Shelter Cymru shows that over a million children and adults in Wales are living in unsafe or unaffordable housing.

This includes everything from families forced to choose between paying rent or mortgage payments and buying food, to people living in homes riddled with damp, mould and disrepair. The shocking new figures show the scale of the challenge facing the Welsh Government and show why good homes must be front and centre of the Government’s welcome commitment to build back better and fairer in the wake of the pandemic.

The research reveals a variety of alarming ways that the housing emergency is affecting people across all of Wales:

  • Almost 1 in 10 people (9%)- equivalent to an estimated over a quarter of a million people (283, 000) - have had to cut spending on household essentials like food or heating in order to afford rent or mortgage payments.
  • 1 in 6 people (16%) – equivalent to an estimated half a million people (504, 000) – say they cannot keep their home warm in winter.
  • Over 1 in 10 (13%) – equivalent to an almost half a million people (409,000) – are living in homes that are not structurally sound or have hazards such as faulty wiring or fire risks.
  • Just over 1 in 4 people (26%) – equivalent to an estimated 819,000 people - are living in homes with significant damp, mould or condensation problems.
  • 1 in 10 people – equivalent to an estimated 315,000 people – say their current housing situation is harming their mental health, or their family’s mental health.

Locally, in Denbighshire, 147 households were assisted by the SC Live helpline (including 77 children) compared to 175 in Flintshire (with 114 children) and 185 in Wrexham (with 105 children).

Broken down further to the number of people who have been assisted in all HS services are 786 in Denbighshire (including 330 children), 914 in Flintshire (including 381 children) and 905 in Wrexham (including 330 children).

In addition to the above, the charity said people on the lowest incomes are the most affected by the housing emergency. Unfortunately, this often includes people in ethnic minority groups, people with disabilities, members of the LGBTQ+ community and people with other protected characteristics.

Research found that an estimated 75,000 (3%) of adults said they had experienced discrimination when they tried to find their current home and felt it was because of their ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, religion or disability.

The charity said now is the time for politicians and parties come together locally and nationally to deliver on their commitments, in light of these findings: building at least 20,000 new, high quality social homes; helping the thousands of people priced out of renting and buying; and ensuring families pushed into homelessness are not trapped in temporary accommodation, and that no-one in Wales is forced to sleep on the streets.

Ruth Power, Chief Executive of Shelter Cymru, added: “At Shelter Cymru, we know that home is everything. This research highlights the challenges that so many people in Wales have faced during the pandemic.

“But unfortunately these challenges are not new – they are longstanding problems that need bold and ambitious action to solve.

“Good homes are the foundation of all of our lives. They let people go to work every day, without worrying about what they’ll come home to. They let children thrive in school. They give us the comfort, safety and security that is vital to healthy, happy and productive lives.

“Our research shows the scale and seriousness of the housing emergency in Wales and shows that urgent action is needed.

“For the families foregoing food to keep roofs over their heads; for the renters threatened with eviction because Covid pushed them into unemployment; for the generation of young people for whom buying or renting their own home is an unachievable daydream - Shelter Cymru will always "

“Join Shelter Cymru and help us to fight for home. Together, we can end the housing emergency in Wales, once and for all.”