Thousands of people and families are languishing on social housing waiting lists in mid and north Wales, new Shelter Cymru figures reveal, as the charity calls for the “alarming” statistics to serve as a “wake up call” to the current housing crisis.

Shelter Cymru said it is calling for “immediate action to address the critical shortage of social homes in Wales”, after Freedom of Information data showed that more than 94,000 households—representing approximately 170,000 people, including 45,000 children —are currently on waiting lists for social homes in Wales.

The charity said the data, gathered from councils across Wales, “underscores the urgency of the housing emergency and the devastating impact it has on individuals and families in housing need” and said the “staggering” 94,000 figure “can be difficult to comprehend.”

“While the concerns facing each of these 94,000 households will vary, they are all caught in the housing emergency here in Wales,” Shelter Cymru said, “an emergency that can be ended if given appropriate focus and resource.”

In Gwynedd, 2,394 households were on the waiting list for a social home according to the data collected on 22 July last year.

Of those, more than 1,000 were households with dependent children, including 618 single parents.

1,175 single households were on the waiting list in Gwynedd with 152 of those aged under 25, and 497 aged over 55.

The large majority of those waiting on Gwynedd housing lists need a one or two bedroom property.

In Powys, the social housing waiting list reached 4,392 as at 19 July 2024.

Just 387 of those were families or single parents with children, with the majority made up of single households.

The largest need across Powys remains one and two bedroom homes.

In Ceredigion, a total of 2,031 households are on waiting lists for social housing as at 30 June last year.

Ceredigion County Council did not give a breakdown of what type of households were on the waiting list, but the majority of households are waiting for a one-bedroom home.

Last year, only 2,600 social homes were delivered across Wales.

“At this rate it would take a staggering 35 years to build the homes we already need,” Shelter Cymru said.

“While the Welsh Government is investing in social homes, and has rightly set out an ambitious target to deliver 20,000 new social homes by the end of 2026, the reality is that more is needed.”

Shelter Cymru’s FOI data also shows that single-parent families are disproportionately represented on waiting lists for a social home.

For children this can have a devastating impact, with some trapped in temporary accommodation while others have to live with the daily challenges of homes that are overcrowded, unaffordable, and in some cases filled with damp and mould.

With over half of households in Wales waiting for a social home are waiting for a one-bedroom home, Shelter Cymru said “the demand for one-bedroom homes and the lack of progress in developing our stock of one-bedroom homes is placing an additional financial burden on Local Authorities.”

“Local government is feeling this impact through the cost of providing temporary accommodation while they wait for a social home,” the charity said.

Ruth Power, CEO of Shelter Cymru said the new figures are a “wake-up call.”

“It is unacceptable that more than 94,000 households are forced to wait years for a place they can call home,” she said.

“We must confront the reality that as a nation we are failing to meet the needs of our communities.

“Investing in social homes is a moral obligation; it is an investment in a stable foundation for people’s lives, health and futures.

“But it’s also a practical solution to a pressing problem.

“If we don’t deliver more social homes, it will ramp up the financial pressures on local authorities that are already struggling to cope with local demand for social homes.

“We need to step up our response to the housing emergency in Wales and increase investment to ensure that everyone has access to the basic foundations of a settled home they can afford.”

Shelter Cymru has called for increased investment from the Welsh Government to deliver the social homes, through construction or acquisition.

They say this must come alongside a “clear strategy that sets out the role of social homes in our wider housing system and the range of measures that will be taken to ensure the homes we need are delivered at pace.”

“We need to see stronger partnership work between the Welsh Government, local authorities and all social landlords,” Shelter Cymru said.

“Social homes are key to creating a future where everyone has access to a safe, stable, and genuinely affordable home.”

Alicja Zalesinska, Chief Executive of Tai Pawb who lead the Back the Bill campaign for a legal right to adequate housing in Wales, said: “The positive steps from Welsh Government aimed at meeting people’s housing needs clearly fall short of the fundamental change necessary to address the housing emergency.

“I have no doubt that this need for change is felt deeply by the 170,000 people on the waiting lists, who simply cannot wait 35 years for their housing situation to be resolved.

“That’s why Back the Bill coalition believes that addressing the housing crisis must be a central mission for the government and it can only be achieved by hardwiring this commitment into Welsh legislation by introducing the right to a good home.”

In February, the Senedd’s Local Government and Housing Committee said that “Wales is in the midst of a housing crisis and increasing the supply of social housing is essential to address it.”

As of December 2024, the Welsh Government was less than halfway towards reaching its target to build 20,000 new low carbon social homes for rent between 2021 and 2026.

The 2025-26 Welsh Government budget increased capital spending for affordable housing by around £81m to £437m.

Shelter Cymru, along with other voices in the housing and homelessness sector, welcomed the Welsh Government’s increased investment but warned that a recent Audit Wales report, released ahead of the draft budget announcement, estimated an additional £580 million to £740 million would be needed just to deliver the pipeline of homes that the Welsh Government has identified as deliverable.

“While an increase of £81 million is a welcome step, it falls well short of what is needed to meet the target of 20,000 social rent and affordable homes by March 2026,” Shelter Cymru said.

“Even if the Welsh Government did meet its ambitious target for social homes the data shows that tens of thousands of households would still be left waiting.

“Given that the true level of demand for social homes in Wales exceeds 90,000 homes, significant additional investment is needed year on year to deliver the homes we need.

“Whilst there are clearly some technical barriers impacting the delivery of social homes there is also a question about the priority that social homes are given in both Welsh Government spending and policy.”

Shelter Cymru said there needs to be a focus on a sustainable pipeline of delivery of social housing, at a scale that meets demand, beyond 2026.