General description

The information is collected in order to establish the number and type of households that were accepted as homeless by local authorities during the period and the reasons why these households are homeless. It is also used to establish the number of homeless households in temporary accommodation and the types of accommodation provided. This data is used by the Welsh Government, homelessness agencies and other housing organisations, in order to help monitor trends in the overall level of statutory homelessness across Wales.

Extra information is collected about acceptances of these statutory homeless households. This includes information on the different types of homeless households, which are known as priority need groups, and also the reason why households lost their last settled home.

The Welsh Government introduced secondary legislation (starting from 1 March 2001) extending the priority need categories. The figures from October to December 2001 onwards cover the new priority need categories.

From 2011-12, breakdowns by family type are only available annually.

Quality information
1. This data covers numbers of households not persons.
2. Homelessness data may be subject to seasonal variations, however the data shown in this cube has not been seasonally adjusted and care should be taken when making comparisons between successive quarters.
3. All the figures are rounded independently to the nearest 5 to protect the identity of individuals. As a result, there may be a difference between the sum of the constituent items and the total. An asterisk is shown when the data item is disclosive or not sufficiently robust for publication.

Data collection and calculation

The information presented here is based on Welsh local authorities' actions under the homelessness provisions of the Housing Act 1996. This covers the decision as to whether or not there is an obligation under the Act for the local authority to help the household. That is whether the authority accepts that the household is eligible, unintentionally homeless and falls within a priority need group. In this case the household is accepted as statutory homeless.

Frequency of publication

Quarterly

Data reference periods

The information is based on a quarterly statistical return completed by local authorities in Wales from 1997-98. From April 2002 onwards the return was revised and extended to collect information about the age and ethnicity of applicants, the types of household accepted as homelessness and the length of time households stay in temporary accommodation.

Users, uses and context

Please find this information in the related statistical publication, as per the given weblink.

Rounding applied

Yes all the figures are rounded independently to the nearest 5 to protect the identity of individuals

Revisions information

Data prior to the last period covered have been revised since previously published. Revisions are marked in the data with an (r).

Title

Households accepted as homeless, by main reason for loss of last settled home and household type

Last update

24 June 2015 24 June 2015

Next update

September 2015 (provisional)

Publishing organisation

Welsh Government

Source 1

Homelessness data collection, Welsh Government

Contact email

stats.housing@wales.gsi.gov.uk

Designation

National Statistics

Lowest level of geographical disaggregation

Local authorities

Geographical coverage

Wales

Languages covered

English only

Data licensing

You may use and re-use this data free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government License - see http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence

Statistical quality

Please find this information in the related statistical publication, as per the given weblink.

Keywords

Housing, Homelessness, Priority Need

Weblinks

http://gov.wales/statistics-and-research/homelessness/?lang=en

Name

HOUS0405