Court Road Village Project: Denise Baker

28 April 2022

Last year The Council announced the opening of temporary accommodation on Court Road in Barry as part of a multi-million-pound Welsh Government plan to tackle homelessness.

This development, consisting of 11 bungalows, is the first of its kind in Wales and was built in response to the high demands being placed on other temporary accommodation in the Vale.

Part of the Housing Team, Temporary Accommodation Officer Denise Baker has played a key part in getting the facility up and running.

“The new development at Court Road has given applicants something to aspire to as the lodges are sought after and provide a self-contained, affordable, interim housing solution,” she said.

“The residents that have been accommodated at the site have developed a greater respect for the service and the staff involved. This is in part due to the respect the units have given the applicants.  

“This is evident due to 7 out of the 11 residents now being in education, training or employment, as well as a reduction in offending behaviour for some individuals.”

With help and support from the team, 63 per cent of the residents are either working, or in education which far exceeds the numbers in other forms of temporary accommodation.

“First of all, each lodge within the Court Road project, affectionately known to the team as the Court Rd Village, is furnished with white goods and a bed,” Denise added.

“However, the most important aspect the Village provides to its residents is respect and the overall wellbeing benefits that the environment offers.”

Denise has grown up and lived in the Vale all her life and joined the team in 2014. 

Outside of work, Denise enjoys keeping active and spending time with her grandchildren. She is also a hedgehog champion and has her own sanctuary and hospital for hedgehogs in her garden, nursing them back to health. 

Denise’s work involves building a good relationship with the residents, enabling them to sustain their accommodation and ability to thrive. Denise explains that her previous experience of working with asylum seekers has helped her greatly with this.

The Court Road homelessness project wasn’t without its challenges. Due to Covid-19 the project experienced many delays. The team also had to wait for many of the materials to arrive from Europe.

This project is a joint effort and Denise is supported by a dedicated homelessness team. Without the foresight and commitment of Housing Services as a whole, the Council’s local Ward Members, and the encouragement of WG, the scheme may not have been possible.

The Village has undoubtedly become a very important community to its residents and lives have been positively touched, with many of the residents going on to secure their own permanent home. 

The Council is currently exploring options to replicate the scheme elsewhere in the Vale.