A HOUSING development in Newport, built to help tackle homelessness in the city, received an extra special visitor today in the form of the Prince of Wales, Prince William.

Prince William was already in Newport, having visited Maindee Primary School earlier in the day, but his next port of call was Hill Street.

The Prince of Wales was due to be shown around a block of “innovative” pre-fabricated homes in Newport city centre are helping to tackle the wider housing crisis.

The Prince of Wales was in Hill Street as part of the launch of his Homewards project to make homelessness "rare, brief and unrepeated".

He has chosen Newport as one of six target areas for the five-year project, pledging up to £500,000 funding for "locally-led" work to eradicate rough-sleeping, sofa surfing, and other forms of temporary accommodation.

Residents and press lined the car park as the Royal motorcade pulled in.

The Prince of Wales was first introduced to the leader of Newport City Council Jane Mudd, before being shown around the development.

Housing association Linc Cymru opened the 12 one-person apartments in Hill Street in late September, and each home has now been occupied.

The two-storey building was nearly entirely put together in a factory, and then lifted into place by a crane, on the site of a former car park which the firm has leased from Newport City Council.

Each home is designed with insulation and efficiency in mind, and solar panels on the roof generate electricity for the residents.

After a brief run-through of what has gone into the Hill Street development, the Prince was given the chance to speak to one of the residents at the complex, Sam Lewis, inside her flat.

The Prince remarked on the greenery around the flats.

“You must hear the church bells," he said "it’s nice and central here”.

Ms Lewis explained that she had ended up homeless after leaving "a relationship which ended badly".

"I ended up in temporary accommodation for about a year," she said.

"I’ve lived here for nine months. I was living in a hotel and then a bedsit before this."

She said that the Hill Street site had "changed my life".

"More of these should be built," she said.

Prince William said: "You can’t get better until you have somewhere to call home. It’s the young I’m worried about – they often get lost in the system.

"The longer it goes on the worse it can get in terms of isolation and things like that.

"We’re trying to prevent that."

Afterwards, the Prince of Wales met additional residents, as well as staff from Linc Cymru, the organisation behind the development.

He posed for selfies with residents, their families and Linc staff, before talking more in depth to those who had been affected by homelessness in the past.

One resident, Mohammed Kharif, the Prince took a particular shine to, speaking at length about Mr Kharif’s experiences.

Before leaving, he gave Mr Kharif a warm handshake and said “Mo, I’ll be seeing you again”.

After the departure of the Prince of Wales, the Argus spoke to Ms Lewis and Mr Kharif about their experiences at Hill Street and also what it was like to welcome royalty to their complex.

Ms Lewis said: "He was lovely, although it was a bit of a shock to find out first thing this morning that a Prince was coming.

"This place means safety, security and not having to worry about being moved on.

"It has helped my mental health. I know my neighbours now.

"I think what the Prince is doing is amazing. He’s doing a fabulous job.

"We’ve been ignoring this issue, but it needs to be addressed.

"I think we can eradicate homelessness in this country, it just takes work. People don’t need to be homeless."

Mohammed Kharif is originally from Sudan, but fled in 1991 due to the civil war.

He has been in Newport since 2016. He said he had been homeless for two years before finding accommodation at the Newport site.

Speaking to the Argus, Mr Kharif joked that he was 25 years old "plus tax". He is actually 50.

"It is amazing to have permanent accommodation after being in temporary accommodation for some time," he said.

"It was great to meet the Prince, what a day."

The Prince of Wales’ new Homewards programme will give the city "new space, tools and relationships" to combat homelessness, which new figures suggest has affected one in five Britons in some shape or form.

"In a modern and progressive society, everyone should have a safe and secure home, be treated with dignity and given the support they need," Prince William said.

"Through Homewards, I want to make this a reality and over the next five years, give people across the UK hope that homelessness can be prevented when we collaborate."

The prince's commitment to eradicating homelessness follows on from his mother's own charity work.

Diana, the late Princess of Wales, took her sons to a homeless charity when they were schoolboys and, speaking on Monday, William said the visit "left a deep and lasting impression".