LAURA Anne Jones has thanked Salvation Army workers and volunteers for sharing their stories with her in Newport last week.

The Senedd Member for South Wales East also met with a gentleman who had been living on the streets for a number of years, and is now in permanent accommodation after being helped by the Salvation Army. Ms Jones said it was great to hear his story, but said she was concerned about how long it took for him to get into accommodation.

Following the visit, Ms Jones called for a change in attitudes towards housing and rehabilitation in order to achieve better outcomes for vulnerable people.

Laura Anne Jones MS, Senedd Member for South Wales East and Shadow Minister for Housing, Local Government and the Armed Forces, said,“I’m so grateful to the team here for sharing their experiences of helping people who are homeless, dealing with addiction and needing a variety of support.

“Clearly there is much that needs to change, in particular the mindset and culture around the importance of housing and rehabilitation and other preventative services.

“We must start looking at policy differently if we want to achieve better results and outcomes for people.

“We must also start investing properly in preventative policy measures when it comes to homelessness, particularly around hospital discharges and those coming out of prison, which as well as improving lives, would save the NHS and criminal system millions of pounds.”