Wales has an increasingly acute homelessness issue. Welsh Government statistics showed a 58% increase in the number of people being assessed as homeless by local authorities between 2016 and 2017 (Cymorth Cymru 2017), and Cardiff Council have reported that the number of people sleeping on the streets of the city recently doubled in the space of a year (BBC Wales, 18 Dec. 2017). In response, Welsh Government’s First Minister Carwyn Jones announced £10m to eradicate youth homelessness in Wales by 2027, with a further £20m to tackle the issue over the next two years.
This project is placed in Cathays, Cardiff. The brief for this project was to design a homeless shelter to combat the alarming number of homeless people living within the area. My overall concept is about not just giving homeless people a place to stay but also giving them a chance to integrate themselves back into society once they feel they are ready.
My design is focused on the idea of giving homeless people their own permanent space which they can live in as a stepping stone to better things. The project also works with the existing vegan kitchen which is run by volunteers. The residents within the homeless shelter can work within the gardens provided to supply the vegan kitchen with produce. This is something positive that is done for the community making them more desirable for paid work.
The homes themselves are passive-haus. This provides the residents with a much lower heating and electricity bill at the end of every month, making it easier for them to get back on their feet.
For passive house to receive the passive gains it requires to maintain heat levels within the building, it should be placed within an area which is not overshadowed by other buildings.
The two conjoining curves create a nurturing space that provides an embrace within. The courtyard created by these two shapes provides a private space for the residents of the intervention. however a path is created from the student streets of Catheys to the main travel route. This encourages interactions between residents with students on the front of their homes, allowing them to feel like part of society.
Elevation
