The report says there is an apparent but not conclusive downward trend in homelessness in Wales. Numbers of people recorded as homeless have decreased from approximately 2,600 in the third quarter of 2004 to 1,900 in the second quarter of 2006, but there has been a slight increase over the past six months. The statistics may not tell the whole story as some people do not report themselves as homeless.

The Strategy, with a clear focus on preventing homelessness, is credited with encouraging public bodies and other agencies to work together. There are many examples of successful joint working under the Strategy, but co-ordination between Assembly departments and the progress made so far needs to be built on. While the Assembly Government has done a lot to raise awareness of the Strategy it has varying degrees of influence with the different bodies involved in tackling homelessness. It has introduced new guidance and provides grant funding to develop new prevention initiatives.
 
Monitoring and evaluation of the Strategy is not yet fully developed and will be challenging especially where there are no quantifiable targets. The Assembly Government is also seeking to address the issue of supply and demand through its National Housing Strategy and the Affordable Housing Toolkit.

The report has made a number of recommendations to help reduce the level of homelessness in Wales further, including:

• Improving the measurement of homelessness by the Welsh Assembly Government and local authorities;

• A Welsh Assembly Government examination of the relationship between the use of social and private rented sector, the supply of affordable accommodation and homelessness;

• Internal awareness raising of the Strategy within the Welsh Assembly Government;

• Joint work with local authorities and independent organisations to identify and implement the best ways of providing advice services; and

• Continued support by the Welsh Assembly Government of local authorities and independent providers to make Supporting People schemes part of a clear, local, strategic framework, which is based on identified need.

Jeremy Colman, Auditor General for Wales said today,
“Homelessness is a complex and pressing social concern and one which can only be tackled by working across organisational boundaries. Supply of affordable housing in Wales is clearly a crucial factor and the Assembly Government is seeking to address this through its National Housing Strategy. The Homelessness Strategy certainly has the potential to help prevent homelessness. With improved coordination and better evaluation it should make an increasing impact.”

Notes to Editors:

• This report examined whether the National Homelessness Strategy can prevent homelessness.

• The Welsh Assembly Government published its finalised National Homelessness Strategy in November 2005. It aims to strengthen the focus of homelessness services on prevention, support and access to housing.

• The Supporting People programme plays an important role in helping people with particular support needs to live in the community. For example, it helps prevent both first time and repeat homelessness by enabling people to manage their tenancies.

• The Wales Audit Office is independent of government and is responsible for the annual audit of some £19 billion of annual public expenditure.

• Its mission is to promote improvement, so that people in Wales benefit from accountable, well-managed public services that offer the best possible value for money. It is also committed to identify and spreading good practice across the Welsh public sector.

• The Wales Audit Office was created in April 2005 through the Public Audit (Wales) Act, 2004, which expanded the functions of the Auditor General for Wales and enabled the transfer of staffs from the Audit Commission in Wales and National Audit Office in Wales to his employment.

Ends
For more information please contact Rachel Moss on 029 2026 2675 or email Rachel.moss@wao.gov.uk.