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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure that families living in temporary accommodation have access to adequate cooking and laundry facilities; and whether she plans to issue updated statutory guidance or minimum standards on the provision of such facilities.

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.

Our Local Performance and Accountability Toolkit, which can be found here, states that temporary accommodation policies should include how the authority will ensure that families in temporary accommodation have access to key facilities, including cooking and laundry facilities, secure storage and Wi-Fi. Households may request a review if they consider their accommodation unsuitable and complain to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman or take legal action if they are dissatisfied with how their case has been handled.