The Archbishop of Wales is urging people who’ve experienced bad housing and homelessness to share their stories and help shape future policy.
Dr Barry Morgan is the chair of Shelter Cymru’s Commission of Inquiry into homelessness in Wales, which has been brought back together to mark the charity’s 30th birthday this year.
The original Commission, established in 2006, heard evidence from more than 60 groups and 180 individuals from across Wales, illustrating the links between bad housing and ill-health, low educational achievement and crime. This formed the basis for a set of recommendations, which were presented to the First Minister for the government to consider.
The Commission is holding an evidence day in the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff, on Monday 14 March and the Archbishop says they are keen to hear from as broad a range of people as possible. For those who can’t make it to Cardiff on that day, evidence can also be submitted in written form.
The Archbishop said: “The only real way to feel the true grip poverty has on Wales is to go behind the closed doors and meet the families struggling to keep a roof over their heads, the children sharing mattresses on dirty floors, and those unable to call any address their own. Only then can one begin to understand how basic housing is to a person’s health, education, employment and self-respect.
“The Welsh Assembly Government says it is prioritising social housing needs and I sincerely hope the evidence we collect from some of the poorest people in Wales this year will, as a result of that and other initiatives, be more encouraging than it was four years ago.”
John Puzey, director of Shelter Cymru, said: “The dramatic political and economic changes that have taken place since 2006 makes this year an ideal time to assess how far the Commission’s recommendations have been acted on, as well as to put down some markers for how we want to progress.”
For more information about giving evidence to the Commission, please contact Ceri Dunstan on 01792 483021 or email [email protected]
