A local woman has spoken of her delight that she now has a home after moving into a new housing scheme for the homeless in Newquay.

Sonia, not her real name, is among people who have moved in the new development of 18 purpose-built SoloHaus modular homes on the lower part of Tregunnel Hill car park.

She said: “I love the independence I now have in my own home and my own space. This is the support I’ve needed, and I can talk to them about anything. 

“I come from this area, and I’ve lived here my whole life. This is the place I call home.  Now I have a proper home and it’s my time to prove to myself, not to anyone else, that I can do it.” 

Each development provides modular homes with outside space, utilising low carbon heating technologies.  The homes are specifically intended to help those with a history of homelessness who are ready to move on from emergency accommodation or other provision, and will help reduce the need to place people in expensive, nightly-paid hotels and B&Bs. 

Olly Monk, Cornwall Council portfolio holder for housing and planning, said: “We’re using all means at our disposal to tackle the housing crisis, including prevention services, outreach, providing emergency and temporary accommodation as well as building and buying more homes for social rent. 

“This latest scheme is part of a plan for this part of Newquay to not only provide excellent quality accommodation for single people who would otherwise be homeless, but to also revamp the car park here at Tregunnel Hill and put in measures to deter unauthorised encampments which has been an issue here in the past.  

“These modular SoloHaus homes provide excellent quality accommodation for single people who would otherwise be homeless.  It means that we have a stock of good quality homes that people can live in for a short period on dedicated sites, whilst they get the help and support, they need to secure a permanent home. 

“We are helping residents live nearer to where they want and need to be, with the security of knowing this home is theirs until a permanent one can be found.”

Cornwall Council has bought SoloHaus homes to provide secure, comfortable homes as follow-on accommodation to local people as they progress out of emergency housing, helping them regain their independence following a landmark deal with award-winning housebuilder The Hill Group.

The specially designed modular homes provide a safe, comfortable, and independent space for residents and arrive fully furnished, ready for installation onto a pre-prepared site. Designed to house single people, the homes have a 60-year lifespan and are built to Future Homes Standards, exceeding building regulations for energy efficiency and sound insulation. 

The first SoloHaus development was installed in Truro. There are two more under construction, one in Penzance and one in Penryn, which are being developed as a ‘move on’ site to provide safe and secure homes for people in urgent housing need.  

Rory Lowings, the project manager for SoloHaus at The Hill Group said: “We are proud to be working in partnership with Cornwall Council to provide purpose-built homes for people at risk of homelessness.  SoloHaus is an ideal housing solution for Cornwall, as it delivers high-quality accommodation that can be deployed quickly. I am delighted to see these next 18 specially designed modular homes in use as the first residents move in and I’m confident they will have a positive impact on people’s lives for many years to come.” 

A portable solution, SoloHaus is designed to be deployed permanently or on a temporary basis. 

The Tregunnel Hill development will be managed by Cornwall Housing Ltd who will provide all of the housing management functions, ensuring the smooth operation and maintenance of the homes and the site.

Karen Centini, the specialist services team leader at Cornwall Housing, said: “We are proud to manage these homes and support residents as they transition to a more stable future. The new micro-homes not only provide immediate relief for those facing homelessness but also offer a solid foundation for residents to rebuild their lives. This development represents hope and opportunity for those in urgent housing need, and we look forward to witnessing the positive impact it will have.  "Our Rough Sleeper Accommodation Project (RSAP) team are responsible for the housing management at SoloHaus. The team have been working tirelessly with Harbour Housing and other partner agencies to allocate tenants to homes and ensure they move in as smoothly and quickly as possible, so the tenants can begin their journey towards independent living." 

Harbour Housing will be providing tenancy sustainment support, helping residents to integrate into their new homes and maintain their tenancies successfully.  

Malcolm Putko, the group operations director at Harbour Housing said: “We deliver support to help residents succeed in living independently. One of our newly arrived residents here at Tregunnel Hill almost burst into tears when she first moved in as she couldn’t believe the quality of the accommodation. We work with individuals to provide a person-centred approach and help each tenant sign up for education or training so they can find a regular source of income before moving to a more permanent home.” 

There are currently over 800 households living in temporary or emergency accommodation across Cornwall with nearly 100 people in Newquay alone, so this scheme help will help around 20% of those.  People can find themselves homeless for many reasons, including family or relationship breakdown, fleeing domestic violence, eviction from a privately rented home (including ‘no fault’ evictions), loss of income/employment, bereavement, significant changes to mental or physical health, or struggling to cope with life outside the armed forces.   

The council is also progressing on a recently agreed programme to purchase 50 high quality two and three bed properties by the end of 2025 to be used as temporary accommodation for families.  

The programme is being developed at a capital cost of up to £17.2m, on an invest-to-save basis, generating a net saving to the Council of 74% by not putting families in emergency accommodation and enabling more local residents to be housed in high quality, stable, temporary accommodation.  

The council is also continuing work to buy existing homes to use as social housing, build more council houses for local people to rent or buy and support the provision of affordable homes by housing associations for local people to rent or buy.        

The authority is also ensuring sites deliver affordable housing through the planning process, support community-led organisations that want to deliver their own homes, offer loans to bring empty homes back into use and enable communities to stop new builds being snapped up by would be second homeowners.