Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the number of Integrated Care Boards currently complying with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance on the provision of intermediate care for patients who are experiencing homelessness.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department recognises the importance of ensuring that people experiencing homelessness have access to appropriate intermediate care. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guideline 214 on Integrated health and social care for people experiencing homelessness sets out clear expectations on tailored intermediate care for individuals experiencing homelessness, and we are exploring how best to encourage integrated care boards (ICBs) to adopt and embed this guidance. This guidance is avaiable at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng214/chapter/Recommendations#intermediate-care
Health bodies, including ICBs, are expected to take guidance into account alongside clinical judgement and local priorities. However, NICE guidance is not mandatory. Therefore, there is no published Government assessment showing how many ICBs in England are currently complying with NICE guideline 214.
In December 2025, the Government published the National Plan to End Homelessness and Rough Sleeping which commits to ensuring no one eligible for homelessness assistance is discharged to the street after a hospital stay. Further information on the national plan is avaiable at the following link:
To support this, the Government will work with the National Health Service and local authorities to ensure the 2024 guidance Discharging people at risk of or experiencing homelessness is embedded in systems and will improve how existing funding streams can be used to support intermediate care services tailored to the needs of people experiencing homelessness. Further information on this guidance is avaiable at the following link:
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
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 reduce homelessness in (a) Ashfield constituency and (b) Nottinghamshire.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 99477 on 19 December 2025.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
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 give due regard to the Armed Forces Covenant.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Local authorities are bound by the Armed Forces Covenant when they discharge their housing and homelessness duties, and independent Returning Officers and Electoral Registration Officers support service personnel and their families to register and to vote.
There is statutory guidance for local authorities which takes account of the special circumstances of those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces and their families when discharging homelessness duties which can be found here, and when allocating accommodation, which can be found here.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether Ministers from the Department are responsible for specific policy areas in different geographical regions in Devon.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Ministers from the Housing, Communities and Local Government Department do not have separate responsibility for Devon or any other council nationally, but Devon is included together with other councils for policy areas for which they are responsible. These are as follows;
Current MHCLG Ministers with Responsibilities Relevant to Devon
Minister | Position | Key Responsibilities |
|
Steve Reed MP | Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government | Leads MHCLG; overall strategic oversight of housing, planning, and local government policy in England |
|
Matthew Pennycook MP | Minister of State for Housing and Planning | Housing policy, planning reform, planning casework, Homes England, housing delivery, affordable housing programmes |
|
Alison McGovern MP | Minister of State for Local Government and Homelessness | Local government finance, structural reform & reorganisation, homelessness, supported housing |
|
Miatta Fahnbulleh MP | Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Devolution, Faith and Communities | English devolution (including Devon & Torbay CCA), regional growth, investment zones, faith-based engagement |
|
Samantha Dixon MP | Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Building Safety, Fire and Democracy | Building safety regulations, fire safety, cladding remediation, local democratic frameworks |
|
Baroness Taylor of Stevenage | Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Lords) | Local government and housing engagement; represents MHCLG interests in House of Lords |
|
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Local Authority Housing Fund: Round 4 can be used to provide accommodation for asylum seekers and former asylum seekers other than those from Afghanistan.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Local Authority Housing Fund Round 4 (LAHF R4) funds local authorities to provide better quality temporary accommodation to those owed homelessness duties, as well as providing sustainable settled housing for families on the Afghan Resettlement Programme (ARP).
Asylum seekers are not eligible for LAHF accommodation, and they are not eligible for social housing.
Former asylum seekers who have been granted indefinite leave to remain (ILR), refugee status or humanitarian protection, or leave to remain with recourse to public funds, may be entitled to homelessness assistance and temporary accommodation.
Asked by: Alex McIntyre (Labour - Gloucester)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of temporary accommodation available in Gloucester; and what steps his Department is taking to help reduce the time people spend in temporary accommodation in Gloucester constituency.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This government inherited a homelessness crisis with record numbers in temporary accommodation. Our National Plan to End Homelessness sets out how we will get back on track to ending homelessness by tackling its root causes. We are building 1.5 million homes, including a generational increase in new social and affordable homes. We have set out a new 10-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme backed by a £39 billion investment. We will also increase the supply of good quality temporary accommodation and support resettlement through the £950 million Local Authority Housing Fund.
Legislation and statutory guidance are clear that local authorities should, wherever possible, place homeless households within their own area. Authorities receiving out-of-area placements must be notified in accordance with the law: this is not a tick-box exercise but should involve engagement with the receiving authority where necessary to minimise disruption and promote the welfare of any children. The former Deputy Prime Minister wrote to councils in November 2024 to remind them of this duty and made clear that failures to notify are unacceptable, as they put additional pressure on services and risk the safety of those placed.
In October 2025, we provided £10.9 million funding for 61 local authorities to support families and children in temporary accommodation, including those placed out of area, making a tangible impact on their quality of life whilst they remain in need. This will fund a range of interventions to support families to access basic facilities, including Wi-Fi, laundry services, travel passes for school, improved communal spaces for homework and recreation and assistance with paying for food and leisure facilities.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Friern Barnet)
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 increase community funding for employment and skills support for people living in supported accommodation to prevent future homelessness.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Through our National Plan to End Homelessness the government is putting prevention at the heart of public services, including action to help prevent homelessness. Through our Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector grant, Homeless Link have produced resources to support homelessness services increase access to employment and volunteering opportunities for people with lived experience of homelessness.
The government is investing £3.5 billion in homelessness and rough sleeping services over the next three years. This includes almost £2 billion to prevent and address homelessness and rough sleeping through the Homelessness, Rough Sleeping and Domestic Abuse Grant, which local authorities will be able to use flexibly to meet local need, including by commissioning community organisations to deliver employment and skills support, if appropriate.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department provides to local authorities on the mental and physical health impacts of placing households in temporary accommodation outside of their local area.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
This government inherited a homelessness crisis with record numbers in temporary accommodation. Our National Plan to End Homelessness sets out how we will get back on track to ending homelessness by tackling its root causes. We are building 1.5 million homes, including a generational increase in new social and affordable homes. We have set out a new 10-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme backed by a £39 billion investment. We will also increase the supply of good quality temporary accommodation and support resettlement through the £950 million Local Authority Housing Fund.
Legislation and statutory guidance are clear that local authorities should, wherever possible, place homeless households within their own area. Authorities receiving out-of-area placements must be notified in accordance with the law: this is not a tick-box exercise but should involve engagement with the receiving authority where necessary to minimise disruption and promote the welfare of any children. The former Deputy Prime Minister wrote to councils in November 2024 to remind them of this duty and made clear that failures to notify are unacceptable, as they put additional pressure on services and risk the safety of those placed.
In October 2025, we provided £10.9 million funding for 61 local authorities to support families and children in temporary accommodation, including those placed out of area, making a tangible impact on their quality of life whilst they remain in need. This will fund a range of interventions to support families to access basic facilities, including Wi-Fi, laundry services, travel passes for school, improved communal spaces for homework and recreation and assistance with paying for food and leisure facilities.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of rough sleepers in (1) London, and (2) each other region in England and Wales.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government inherited a homelessness crisis - the number of people sleeping rough is far too high. The latest published management information estimated that 2,195 people slept rough across the month in London in September 2025 and 9,292 people slept rough across the month in England. Housing and homelessness is devolved, but the government publishes data on the number of people sleeping rough in England, including regional breakdowns, here.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that newly recognised refugees who are survivors of trafficking, domestic abuse or torture are not left destitute or homeless when asylum support ends.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Home Office is committed to supporting individuals granted leave to remain to successfully transition from asylum accommodation to mitigate the risk of homelessness.
The government is aware of the need for a smooth transition between asylum accommodation and other accommodation for those asylum seekers who are granted leave to remain. The Home Office is working to identify and implement efficiencies to support this process and mitigate the risk of homelessness.
Additionally, the Home Office has also placed Asylum Move On Liaison Officers (AMLOs) in over 50 Local Authorities across the UK, working alongside the Migrant Help and NGOs to support individuals who will be leaving asylum accommodation, and ensure a successful transition.