Young housing professionals have set out their priorities for the next Welsh Parliament in a manifesto that calls for a right to adequate housing and commitments on funding, empty homes and rough sleeping.
Housing Futures Cymru launched its manifesto Time to deliver the right homes in the right places on Thursday calling for a step change and for all political parties to commit to its policy ideas.
The organisation is a policy advisory panel made up of new/young members that have a stake in the future of the housing profession in Wales, set up and supported by CIH Cymru.
Group members have a wide range of experience in housing, with roles from frontline services, to new developments, to housing strategy, housing policy and governance. They can all see the impact the housing crisis is having on our communities, and believe that a step change is needed.
At the forefront of the manifesto, the panel asks that all parties make a real commitment to increase social housing supply across Wales and deliver the right homes in the right places. Incorporating the right to adequate housing into Welsh law is the starting point for the much-needed change in Wales. Political parties are also being asked to:
- Commit the right level of funding
- Deliver the right homes in the right places
- Commit to the right investment to bring empty properties back into use
- Enable the right support services to end rough sleeping
The Housing Futures Cymru panel said:
‘Everyone knows we have a housing crisis in Wales. We have seen this in our different housing roles across the country. The numbers of newly built, truly affordable homes are not meeting demand; housing choice is no longer available, and the days of security in your home seems to be a distant memory. We can see this crisis is slowly becoming “too hard” to fix and we cannot let this happen. Political parties must commit to delivering the right homes in the right places for the sake of our current and future generations.’