More long-term support must be provided for those experiencing and facing homelessness, a homelessness charity has said.
Jasper Thompson, CEO of Bristol-based Help for Homeless, said that temporary accommodation measures are fine in the short-term, but that more needs to be done about keeping families and single individuals off the street.
This comes as the Homes and Housing Delivery Committee unanimously voted in favour of assigning more homes to be made available as temporary accommodation to those facing a housing crisis.
Thompson encouraged plans to make temporary accommodation more available, but stressed that the focus should be on long-term plans to combat homelessness, as well as warning that individuals, who are homeless, should not be allowed to fall through the cracks in favour of families.
There are currently over 22,000 households, waiting for temporary accommodation, as well as 16,000 already in short-term housing.
Chair of the committee, Councillor Barry Parsons, said: “As a council, we need to find new ways to provide more affordable temporary accommodation, to reduce our dependence on expensive, and often unsuitable, temporary accommodation.
“There is no single solution to the temporary accommodation crisis, we and other councils face, but it is clear that whilst the housing crisis continues to cast a shadow over the city, we will continue to face ongoing challenges and ensure support is there for those who need housing.”
The decision comes after the Government announced their plan yesterday for 370,000 new homes to be built annually each year, in order to tackle the housing crisis facing councils across the country.
