Llamau was the one of the first specialist young person’s support providers in Wales and was originally founded when a group of concerned social workers and probation officers realised that there was nowhere for their young people to go when they left the care system or came out of an institution.

Finding accommodation was only a tiny part of the problem. Housing providers could not cope with the young people’s high needs and behaviour. Vulnerable young people did not have the necessary skills and experience to cope with the responsibilities that managing a home required and there was no support available to assist them, as a result when accommodation was found it usually resulted in an eviction and a blight on the young persons housing record.

 

Since that time Llamau has flourished and grown, alongside the young people with whom it has worked. The majority of Llamau service users are still homeless young people aged 16-21, care leavers, young offenders and those at risk of offending. However in recent years we have expanded our client group to meet the needs of vulnerable women and to give essential advice and support to all homeless people. We currently provide support services to over 730 people in SE Wales, all of whom are those at the highest risk of social exclusion, who may have experienced abuse, substance misuse and have significant health and educational needs.

 

Llamau have now developed a continuum of supported accommodation services across S. E. Wales, from street homelessness services through to independent living and full community integration. We provide emergency and direct access bedspaces, short stay hostels, specialist 24 hour staffed project houses, supported flats and floating support services. Our intensive supported accommodation services provide the initial ‘safe’ environment within which our service users can start to address some of the issues which have caused them to become homeless and develop the essential skills needed for a sustainable future.