Barry | Archive | 2004 | August | 12
From the archive, first published Thursday 12th Aug 2004.
A PREGNANT Barry mum and her husband say they have been left homeless and destitute after the Homes4U scheme classed them as low priority.
Angela and Daniel Albertides have a 16-month old daughter, Jade, and the couple are expecting their second baby in eight weeks.
But although they insist they were driven from their first house by thugs who made their lives a living hell, they have been given no help in finding a new home.
Daniel, 22, said: "We lived in Barry Road, but a group of teenagers started threatening Angela and breaking windows. We put ourselves on the housing register, but because we had a house we were classed as bronze."
Fleeing the privately rented house in fear, the family now sleep on the floor in Daniel's mother's house in College Road.
Angela, 20, added: "Jade is very unsettled and my mother-in-law Christine is disabled, so her health is suffering. She's been so understanding but there's just not enough room."
In desperation they turned to Vale MP John Smith, who described Homes4U as a sham.
He raged: "Homes4U works on a rating system, gold for high priority and bronze for low.
"How can this family with one young child and another on the way, not be considered urgent?"
Defending the Vale of Glamorgan Council, Operational Manager (Public Sector Housing) Nick Selwyn said: "The couple, who chose not to accept the council's offer of temporary accommodation are in fact gold members under Homes4U and one of 120 priority homeless clients who need to bid for properties when they are advertised fortnightly.
"Currently there are 3,323 Homes4U members in all three bands and in July the council was able to let just 30 properties, of which 19 went to the gold category.
"It's widely understood homelessness continues to represent the major housing challenge across the country and in July 33 new cases of homelessness were presented to the Vale council alone."
© Newsquest Media Group 2008