Asked by: Lord Bird (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they gave to including targets for building permanent affordable social housing in the Child Poverty Strategy.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Child Poverty Strategy was developed in collaboration with the National Plan to End Homelessness because the government is focussing on delivering long-term solutions across both agendas. The National Plan to End Homelessness includes our action to tackle the root causes of homelessness, including a generational increase in new social and affordable homes. We are delivering a new 10-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme backed by a £39 billion investment, which aims to build 300,000 social and affordable homes over the programme’s lifetime.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of support given to veterans in a) Leicester and b) the East Midlands.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
This Government is committed to ensuring that veterans and their families are easily able to access support in Leicester, the East Midlands and across the country, when and where it is needed. Late last year we launched a new Veterans Strategy which recognises veterans as a national asset and resets the nation’s relationship with those who have served.
Alongside this, we launched the £50-million VALOUR programme, which will make it easier for veterans to access the care and support they deserve, and confirmed £12 million for the continuation of the Reducing Veteran Homelessness Programme.
In addition, dedicated supported is available to veterans through Ops FORTITUDE, COURAGE, RESTORE, ASCEND and NOVA as well as through programmes such as the Career Transition Partnership.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that local councils provide homelessness assistance to children to prevent them being forced to sleep rough.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I wrote to council leaders and chief executives on Wednesday 25 February setting out local authorities’ legal duties to homeless families with children under the Housing Act 1996 and Children Act 1989. This letter made it clear that a child should never be sleeping rough. A household with a child has priority need for the purposes of the Housing Act 1996. Eligible homeless households with children must be accommodated under section 188, and in some circumstances under section 190(2) or 193 of the Act.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that local authorities have the resources to activate the Severe Weather Emergency Protocol promptly and provide sufficient safe accommodation during periods of extreme cold.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities should plan services which meet the needs of people in their area, which includes planning for periods of extreme cold. The government is providing more than £3.3 billion in homelessness and rough sleeping funding from 2026/27 to 2028/29 through the Local Government Finance Settlement, and councils can use this and their wider settlement to plan and deliver safe accommodation during periods of extreme weather.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to include the needs of children in care in the development of his Department's policy.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
MHCLG works closely with the Department for Education on policy development for children’s social care and is responsible for making funding available to local government for children’s social care service delivery through the Local Government Finance Settlement. As a government, we are driving the biggest transformation of children’s social care in a generation with the Families First Partnership programme – backed by a historic £2.4 billion through the multi-year Settlement’s Children, Families and Youth Grant. This historic investment demonstrates the government’s commitment to invest in prevention and will support councils working across the safeguarding partnership to deliver children’s social care reform, making a real, tangible difference to children and families.
Alongside this programme of reform, helping care leavers to make a successful transition from care to independence is a priority for this Government. Together with the Department for Education, MHCLG will develop a cross-government action plan to reduce the proportion of care leavers under 25 experiencing homelessness. And MHCLG has introduced regulations, which came into force on 10 July 2025, so that young care leavers under 25 will no longer need to meet a local connection or residency test in order to access social housing.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's policy paper entitled A National Plan to End Homelessness, published on 11 December 2025, what assessment she has made with Cabinet colleagues of the potential merits of adding homelessness prevention targets for (a) the Home Office (b) the Department for Work and Pensions.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The National Plan to End Homelessness announces a long-term ambition that no one should leave a public institution into homelessness. This parliament we will take the first steps towards this through joint cross-government targets to reduce the number of people leaving institutions into homelessness.
The Home Office have committed to strengthen data sharing processes with councils for 100% of newly granted refugees at risk of homelessness within two days of an asylum discontinuation of support notification. This supports early intervention by enabling councils to commence homelessness assessments.
Asked by: Baroness Benjamin (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that Windrush survivors have access to targeted mental health support and holistic public services to address harms suffered.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Windrush Vulnerable Persons Team (VPT), established in May 2018, provides specialist assistance to those facing urgent and complex challenges, including financial hardship, homelessness or risk of eviction, difficulty accessing public services, and mental or physical health concerns. The team also supports individuals returning to the UK who require help to resettle.
The VPT operates a multidisciplinary model, working closely with partners across central and local government, as well as employers, landlords, banks and other organisations. This collaborative approach helps remove barriers and stabilise circumstances for those experiencing vulnerability.
Where individuals face immediate hardship, the VPT can administer Urgent and Exceptional Payments to provide rapid financial support. Individuals supported by the VPT are assigned a dedicated contact trained to respond sensitively to vulnerability and trauma.
In addition, the Home Office’s Mobile Biometrics Team travels nationwide to assist people who may struggle to attend fixed sites, enabling them to provide the biometrics required to secure documentation under the Windrush Status Scheme.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of current move‑on and eviction notice periods from asylum accommodation on refugee homelessness.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
For individuals granted leave to remain, we are committed to successfully transitioning them from asylum accommodation, which is why we have extended the grace period to 42 days, from 28 days. In limited circumstances, the 42 day period can be extended on a discretionary basis. Information on extensions can be found in published guidance on GOV.UK here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/ceasing-asylum-support-instruction
In reaching this position, a range of evidence, including key findings from a 56-day pilot evaluation, operational data, and forecasted impacts on the asylum accommodation estate were considered. The Home Office will continue to work closely with our partners to reduce barriers and support effective transitions from asylum accommodation.
Asked by: Lord Bird (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Child Poverty Strategy, published on 5 December 2025, what steps they will take to prevent (1) families from being placed in bed and breakfast accommodation for more than six weeks, and (2) new-born babies from being placed in bed and breakfast accommodation immediately after leaving hospital.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
As set out in the National Plan to End Homelessness, this government is committed to tackling the detrimental impact of living in temporary accommodation on a child’s health, wellbeing and education outcomes. We will work with councils, supported by robust NHS pathways, to make sure safe and appropriate alternatives are available and used for newborn babies. We are also setting an ambition to cut school days lost for children in temporary accommodation, backed by data so that targeted support can be provided more effectively.
Legislation is clear B&B accommodation is never suitable for families with children. There may be instances when B&B accommodation may be the only immediate option, for example emergency placements made out of hours, however such placements should be rare and there is a six-week limit to family B&B placements.
To deliver upon our target to end the use of B&B accommodation for families over the legal six-week limit by the end of this Parliament, we will scale up our Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots into a programme with £30 million funding to tackle a wider range of poor practice. We also increasing the supply of good-quality temporary accommodation through the £950 million fourth round of the Local Authority Housing Fund.
The Government will be introducing a new duty on councils to notify schools, health visitors and GP practices where a child is in temporary accommodation. The intention of the temporary accommodation notification duty is to strengthen information sharing so that educational institutions and health providers are aware where children may require additional or different support and can seek to improve their outcomes. MHCLG, DfE and DHSC are working closely together to develop guidance to relevant bodies, to support effective implementation of this important measure. We are undertaking impact assessments for this measure, including a new burdens assessment for councils which is being informed through engagement with the sector, including councils who have piloted this approach.
Asked by: Lord Bird (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Child Poverty Strategy, published on 5 December 2025, what assessment they have made of the suitability of bed and breakfast accommodation for (1) families, and (2) families with babies; and what are the legal limits on the use of bed and breakfast accommodation for families.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
As set out in the National Plan to End Homelessness, this government is committed to tackling the detrimental impact of living in temporary accommodation on a child’s health, wellbeing and education outcomes. We will work with councils, supported by robust NHS pathways, to make sure safe and appropriate alternatives are available and used for newborn babies. We are also setting an ambition to cut school days lost for children in temporary accommodation, backed by data so that targeted support can be provided more effectively.
Legislation is clear B&B accommodation is never suitable for families with children. There may be instances when B&B accommodation may be the only immediate option, for example emergency placements made out of hours, however such placements should be rare and there is a six-week limit to family B&B placements.
To deliver upon our target to end the use of B&B accommodation for families over the legal six-week limit by the end of this Parliament, we will scale up our Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots into a programme with £30 million funding to tackle a wider range of poor practice. We also increasing the supply of good-quality temporary accommodation through the £950 million fourth round of the Local Authority Housing Fund.
The Government will be introducing a new duty on councils to notify schools, health visitors and GP practices where a child is in temporary accommodation. The intention of the temporary accommodation notification duty is to strengthen information sharing so that educational institutions and health providers are aware where children may require additional or different support and can seek to improve their outcomes. MHCLG, DfE and DHSC are working closely together to develop guidance to relevant bodies, to support effective implementation of this important measure. We are undertaking impact assessments for this measure, including a new burdens assessment for councils which is being informed through engagement with the sector, including councils who have piloted this approach.