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Written Question
Homelessness
Thursday 19th November 2015

Asked by: David Mackintosh (Conservative - Northampton South)

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what progress has been made by the Ministerial Working Group on Preventing and Tackling Homelessness.

Answered by Marcus Jones

I refer my hon. Friend to the Written Ministerial Statement made by my hon. Friend the Member for Keighley and Ilkley (Kris Hopkins) on 26 March 2015, HCWS498, that sets out the considerable progress achieved by the Ministerial Working Group on Homelessness in the last Parliament. Local authorities and the voluntary and community sector have used the £500 million provided by this Government since 2010 to tackle and prevent homelessness, stopping 935,800 households from becoming homeless in the first place. It has also helped launch a significant number of important initiatives, including:


  • No Second Night Out, supported by the £20 million Homelessness Transition Fund, ensuring that rough sleepers receive the rapid support they need to move off the streets.

  • A £5 million investment into the world’s first homelessness social impact bond delivering long term outcomes for 831 of London’s most frequent rough sleepers.

  • The £15 million Fair Chance Fund, using payment by results and social investment to support 1,600 vulnerable young people into accommodation, training and employment.

  • Department of Health’s £10 million Hospital Homeless Discharge Fund, supporting 52 voluntary sector-led projects to improve hospital discharge for homeless people so that their health and housing needs are properly addressed.

  • £13 million to Crisis to support 10,000 single homeless people into accommodation in the private rented sector by 2016.

This Government remains committed to preventing and tackling homelessness. The Working Group is meeting again on Monday 30 November.


Written Question
Housing Ombudsman Service
Monday 14th September 2015

Asked by: David Mackintosh (Conservative - Northampton South)

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, by what mechanism the Housing Ombudsman is accountable to his Department.

Answered by Brandon Lewis

Decisions taken by the Housing Ombudsman are independent and as such, the Housing Ombudsman is not accountable to the Department for its decisions.

The Housing Ombudsman is an arms length body of the Department and the Secretary of State is responsible for approving its annual business plan and performance targets. Performance against these targets is monitored through regular contact with the Department, including through meetings with senior departmental officials.

The Secretary of State is responsible for approving the Housing Ombudsman Scheme – which defines the Ombudsman’s duties but also stresses the independence in its decision making.