Park homes and cabins proposed to tackle emergency housing need in Cornwall

Fifteen portable cabins are being put up at County Hall in Truro to provide emergency accommodation

Park homes and portable cabins are among options being proposed to tackle a shortage of emergency and temporary housing in Cornwall.

Cornwall Council says it currently has 1000 people in need of support, calling it a "massive challenge".

It is looking into purchasing 100 park homes to be built on pop-up sites and has ordered 30 self-contained cabins.

Councillor Olly Monk said "it's simply unacceptable to rely on hotels to house people".

The number of people in temporary or emergency accommodation has doubled compared to this time in 2020, the council said.

As a result people have been housed in hotels, which do not offer security for weekends and the holiday season.

Earlier this month 130 people were moved out of hotels so they could use the rooms for paying customers.

Mr Monk, the council's portfolio holder for housing and planning said: "The Council needs to own this provision so we can offer security of tenure to the families and individuals in need."

'Immediate issue'

Cornwall Council currently spends about £6m a year housing people in need of emergency and temporary accommodation and it predicts it could rise to £10m this year.

"We're acting with urgency to deal with the immediate issue of those in need of emergency accommodation that offers security", said Mr Monk.

He explained the park homes could house up to four people, and 30 self-contained cabins with cooking and showering facilities are arriving in July, with more expected to follow.

The first site is at County Hall where 15 of the cabins are being provided.

Cornwall Council hopes short-term hotel provision will be eliminated by the end of the year.

The proposed accommodation will be on top of any existing temporary solutions used by the council.