What’s the story on Kevin Taylor, the interim chair, who seems to be running the show? According to his Linkedin profile he was working in the Bahamas for 26 years up until 2013. So how did he wash up in Dyffryn Teifi and who appointed him to the board of Cantref? What experience does he have a) of social housing, and b) of Wales?

Can you e-mail editor@jacothenorth.net. There’s a journalist in touch with me who wants to talk to you.

As for the FoI, I sent an e-mail request, which was ignored, and a reminder, which was also ignored.

Surely Millbay Homes, as a subsidiary of Pembrokeshire Housing, wouldn’t be allowed to take over Cantref?

All information gratefully received.

Any luck with FOIs yet? The accounts show another £80k annual loss for the Care Society despite the high rent charges and inter company transfers.

They will soon be going the same way Cantref is going – rumours this week that the interim ceo parachuted in there, Hillary Jones, from neighbouring ha Bro Myrddin has been trying to self promote herself by persuading Wales and West ha from Cardiff to bail out Cantref and give her a bigger job as head of their western poorer Welsh speaking colony. Perhaps she has been getting advice from her (x Gwalia finance director) husband? More hostels anyone? A close friend who works for Cantref tells me that there are five different bidders for Cantref and that Carms Council are now one of them as a certain Mr James is working his magic again and attempting to add Cantref to the Council’s property portfolio. Its unclear whether this has been agreed by Cabinet or full Council or is just a solo enterprise punt. Staff at Cantref are worried they may be required to move to Llanelli to work under Robin Staines. One of his managers has been given a free transfer into Cantref on secondment – or a trojan horse from what senior staff at Ceredigion Council are saying. Crys of foul, vested interest, and insider dealing are now being heard around the Aberaeron office, as they suspect a pre local govt reorganisation strike by Carms officers, whether sanctioned by councillors or not! Popcorn anyone? More to come soon, including details of the Millbay Homes bid, who have the benefit of x Cantref housing director Elin Brock Jones’s previous experience as one of the Cantref directors who bailed out to join Pembrokeshire housing association.Her successor, interim director by the name of David Hedges, and x Wales and West employee, also left early. Oh what tangled webs these people weave – but not difficult to fathom after a bit of web research on rsl websites and linkedin profiles.

And of course Nick Bennett is former head of Community Housing Cymru, the housing associations’ umbrella body, so if he found something wrong then it must be really bad. We need to get in touch when I’m back online, hopefully now next week.

The reason why alcoholics and drug addicts become homeless is because they’ve spent their rent money on special brew or heroin.

Providing them with more cash directly (begging) is feeding their illness. Providing them with accommodation using public funds (even as accommodation bonds and hostel accommodation) without treating their illness is feeding that illness by proxy.

Of course rough sleeping can kill. However, at the coroners inquest any medical practitioner has to justify any of their actions prior to death ‘to having done no harm’ and the police officers that usually have had encounters with the deceased can be criminally liable if a formal encounter or an arrest was made in the period leading to death. Social workers can also be held liable for ‘action not taken’. However, the coroner usually doesn’t require the Enlglish style establishment chucrhy do-gooders for narrative as they can only express the warm fluffy feelings they had or some religious dogma, which is not relevant to the inquiry.

When a council runs away from their responsibility by handing over ‘problems’ to church groups, they also absolve themselves of responsibility for the more problematic sections of the community they are elected to serve. More so if the person was previously within their statutory care obligations. Feeding failure and ‘care farming’ is not something which public money should be spent on.

There can be a very Welsh ‘religious’ dimension to dealing with homelessness and alcoholism. It was pioneered by William Harris who packed them off on his ‘dry ships’ and set up working gangs to build railway cuttings and viaducts. He was from and founded Mynwent y Crynwyr (Quakers Yard).

Aberystwyth does not need a homeless shelter; it needs a railway line to Carmarthen. No beer in the ration but bread on the rails – Harris of Treharris. That’s where the cash highlighted by Jac should be spent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mRqr_h8fOE

The homeless need the gift of independence, self respect and opportunity, A bit like Wales. The best way of tackling impoverishment is not by easing our poverty, but by leading ourselves out of it.

I would agree with you Jac that the funding streams are really complicated going back to the Supporting People initiative. This was an English initiative intended to provide the additional support to tenancies required for a very large range of need. My concern is that as it unravels, and is cut many of the facilities very vulnerable people need will close or be unable to provide the extra support. A good and clear example is a woman’s refuge, they cannot be run safely without staff.

The idea that the customers could quietly move to empty student accommodation is not sensible.