Posted on: Wednesday 1 November 2023
Plans for a new centre to support homeless people in Torfaen have taken a step forward.
The Wallich charity has been awarded a contract to provide 24-hour assistance to people living in flats in Pearl House, in Pontypool town centre, which is being converted.
Earlier this month, Cabinet members approved a plan to spend £449,514 of the £4.6 million Torfaen Council's Welsh Government housing support grant on a new accommodation and assessment hub.
Torfaen Council and Melin Homes, which is carrying out the work at the Grade II property, will meet with the charity in the next couple of weeks to agree contract terms, conditions and requirements.
Councillor David Daniels, Executive Member for Adult Services and Housing, said: “This is an important development towards our goal of providing more sustainable and effective support for homeless individuals in Torfaen.
"Through this multi-agency approach, and having 24-hour support on hand, we hope to be able to better support people to get back on their feet quicker, enabling them to then move into long-term, sustainable accommodation at the other end.
"Using this more tailored approach, we hope to prevent more individuals from becoming entrenched in homelessness, and to provide better outcomes for their overall wellbeing.
"The Wallich already run services from offices in Pearl House to support people with housing problems to access support and help, including people who might be sleeping rough, so there will be continuity in the support people are currently receiving.
"I am very excited about this project, and hopeful of its potential to offer a better helping hand for those people who need its services.”
The work to convert Pearl House into 15 one-bedroom flats is expected to be completed in July 2024, with the hub service also opening from this date
It is expected that tenants will stay at the accommodation for up to six months while they look for alternative accommodation.
Anyone in need of advice about their housing needs can visit the Torfaen Homes website.