Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of women released from prison into homelessness.

The Government recognises that women leaving prison can face distinct and interconnected barriers to securing accommodation, including experiences of domestic abuse and trauma, mental health or substance misuse needs, financial insecurity and caring responsibilities. These factors can make safe, appropriate and sustainable accommodation particularly important to women’s resettlement. Stable accommodation supports effective resettlement and reduces the risk of re-offending.

A minimum of 10% of places across the Community Accommodation Service are allocated to women, in women-only properties. Strategic Housing Specialists also work across the women’s estate with probation teams, Homelessness Prevention Teams and local authorities to identify needs early and improve access to appropriate accommodation before release.

Through the National Plan to End Homelessness, the Government has made a commitment to halving the proportion of prison leavers under probation supervision released with no fixed abode by the end of this Parliament. Regional and local data are published to support action to improve consistency and address geographical variation.

We will continue to invest in integrating digital community accommodation services, to make it easier to identify and match individuals to the right housing support and accommodation at the right time. We will also continue to collaborate with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and other Government Departments, to develop a strong foundation from which we can work together to end homelessness.