The Prince of Wales has announced plans to build 24 homes on land in the Duchy of Cornwall in southwest England to provide temporary accommodation for local people experiencing homelessness.
The project will work with Cornish homelessness charity St Petrox to provide ‘wraparound support’, including training and employment opportunities, in housing in Nansledan, on the outskirts of Newquay.
Development of the “home-like, high-quality temporary accommodation” is expected to begin in September, with the first homes expected to be completed next fall, the foundation said in a statement.
Last year, the Prince’s foundation announced it would provide £3 million in funding to the Homewards Project. The project aims to emulate what is being implemented in Finland and help homeless people find permanent accommodation, regardless of their circumstances.
The principality also said it plans to create a private rental scheme for Nansredan that would provide long-term rental contracts and transparent rent increases for low-income earners.
The estate is also working to build more than 400 social rental homes and a further 475 affordable homes at a new development in South East Faversham, Kent.
However, the move was dismissed by anti-monarchy campaigners as “more fantasy than substance”. Republic chief executive Graham Smith said Britain would spend at least £3.4bn on the monarchy over the next 10 years. “Instead of building 20 luxury homes for a family, this is money that could be invested in housing for the people who need it most,” he said.
“The public knows a lot about the housing crisis because, unlike William, we are all dealing with the effects of it. It’s hard for William to promote this very limited plan in response to this crisis. is nonsense.”
The Duchy of Cornwall spans 52,600 hectares (130,000 acres) from Cornwall to Kent, and was passed to William upon Charles’ accession to the throne in 2022. A portfolio of land, property and investments valued at more than £1 billion will provide a significant income for the future monarch. The Duchy’s annual accounts show it paid his father, the King, £21 million in income in the year to March 31, 2022. .
Homelessness has been a long-standing concern for the Prince of Wales, who became a patron of the homeless charity Centrepoint in 2004 and first visited it as a child with his mother, Princess Diana. He is also a regular customer of “The Passage”.
Ben Murphy, the Duchy of Cornwall’s property manager, said the homes would help people “rebuild their lives”, and Prince William said: “We are determined to continue to be part of the solution when it comes to the housing crisis. ” he said.
He added: “A lack of public and private rental properties is widely considered to be a major cause of homelessness across the country, which is why we are committed to creating more affordable and available housing across the country. We are proud to be launching this project alongside our ambitious plans to take ownership of the project.” Estate. “
Since the Conservative Party came to power in 2010, funding for affordable housing in England has been cut by 63%, with fewer social homes being delivered in England in 2022-23 compared to 40,000 a decade ago. The total number remained at 9,561.
According to the charity Shelter, there are now 1.4 million fewer households in social housing than in 1980, but waiting lists are growing.there were 1.29 million households will be on local authority waiting lists in England by 2023an increase of 73,000 households (6%) compared to March 31, 2022, and the highest number of households on the waiting list since 2014.
Meanwhile, rents in the private sector are rising rapidly, with average private rents in the UK rising to a record high in January. The total cost of rent in the UK has doubled since 2010, while rising house prices and mortgage costs are making it harder for young people to buy a home, according to estate agency Hamptons.
There is record homelessness In the UK, councils and support agencies are under enormous pressure to address the widespread problem of disturbed sleep and insecure housing. The UK is home to over 100,000 households including over 125,000 children. temporary accommodationthe highest number in the past 20 years.
Shelter chief executive Polly Neate welcomed the project. “To truly end homelessness, all political parties need to follow the Prince’s lead and commit to building 90,000 social housing units a year so that everyone who needs it has a home.” she said.
