Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Next steps to put People at the Heart of Care report published in March 2023, whether the amount of money she plans to spend on supporting people to remain in their homes by adapting or maintaining them, including funding classified in that document as unallocated, will be (a) equal to (b) greater than or (c) less than the amount of funding announced for that purpose in the People at the Heart of Care White Paper in December 2021.

In People at the Heart of Care, we announced that £573m would be available for the Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) in each year from 2022-23 to 2024-25. This funding is designed to support people to remain in their own homes by adapting them so that they are safe and suitable. The allocation for the current financial year was made on Wednesday 10 May.

Next Steps to Put People at the Heart of Care reiterated the commitment to this level of funding and announced a further £102m (£50m in 2023-24 and £52m in 2024-25) for housing adaptation support. This is in addition to the amount of dedicated funding announced in the People at the Heart of Care White Paper. The increase will enable local areas to fund supplementary services that are agile and help people stay independent, support hospital discharge, and make minor adaptations.