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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department issues to ensure families with children placed in hotels have adequate access to cooking facilities, nutritional meals and safe communal spaces.

Chapter 17 of the Homelessness Code of Guidance includes information on the suitability of accommodation and makes clear that accommodation which may lack or require sharing of important amenities, such as cooking facilities, should be avoided wherever possible and is not suitable for families with children. You can access the Code of Guidance on gov.uk here.

Such accommodation, including hotels and often referred to as B&B accommodation, should only be used in very short-term emergencies. That is why this government has set a target to end the unlawful use of B&B accommodation for families by the end of this Parliament.

We are working with councils with some of the highest levels of B&B use for temporary accommodation through our £10.5 million Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots to test innovative approaches and kickstart new initiatives to provide more suitable accommodation for homeless families. This includes £360,000 for Oldham over 2024-26.