Under pressure: Three-quarters of Council housing staff say their mental health is in decline

CIH Cymru are today publishing their third Joining the Dots report into the experience of people working in housing departments in local authorities across Wales. The research reveals:

• How during the COVID-19 pandemic local authorities supported record numbers of people from homelessness into accommodation
• Staff have concerns about failings in the system, relating to the lack of land and capacity
• Less than 50 per cent of housing professionals feel confident that their local authority will meet the Government targets for building low-carbon homes in their area
• While recognising the support from their local authority, 75 per cent of staff feel their mental health has worsened since March 2020.

Respondents to our survey of local authority housing professionals told us about their concerns related to

• The impact of the cost of living crisis on communities and availability of appropriate services to provide support
• A lack of suitable accommodation to support people to move-on from temporary accommodation
• More broadly a lack of affordable housing options locally and concerns over landlords leaving the private rented sector.

Why did we do this survey?

Our purpose is to contribute to debates, policy and the legislative agenda about housing in Wales, and we are informed by the experiences of people from across Wales.

We conducted three surveys, first in March 2020, before the impact of the coronavirus and following lockdown, the second in January 2021 and the final one in June 2022. They provide a unique insight into the experience of staff in housing departments during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tyfu Tai Cymru (TTC) is a five-year policy project working through the Chartered Institute of Housing (Cymru) seeking to fill gaps in evidence and use the voices of housing professionals to support policymaking in Wales. Reflecting on one of the main aims of TTC – ‘Making sure housing is always a priority of local government’ this research aims to bring the voices of the housing profession in local government to the fore, highlighting the opportunities and challenges they face in the current climate.

Catherine May, manager of the Tyfu Tai Cymru project at CIH Cymru said:

“When we undertook the first of this series of surveys, we had no idea that so much of the work of housing departments was about to change with a focus on keeping people healthy as never before. The responses each time have told us how proud staff are of the work they do to provide people with a roof over the heads and to support each other. They also tell us of the need to go further and provide more permanent solutions across all areas of Wales.

We hope that this report will encourage discussion of the impact of the pressure staff are under as communities are experiencing the repercussions of the cost-of-living crisis and housing departments continue to be the frontline of support for so many people”