Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
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 will take to remove barriers to accessing a social home for those most in need.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government has already taken action to remove barriers for those most in need of access to social housing, including exempting former members of the regular armed forces, young care leavers under 25 and victims of domestic abuse from local connection tests.
As announced in the government’s National Plan to End Homelessness on 11 December, we will work with partners to update statutory guidance on social housing allocations to ensure that allocations reflect local need and ensure homes go to those who need them the most.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 potential impact on access to social housing of pre-tenancy checks by housing associations on the ability of households experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 98397 on 17 December 2025.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many households have been refused social housing due to affordability checks; and what alternative affordable housing options are available to those households to help prevent homelessness.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 98397 on 17 December 2025.
Asked by: Danny Beales (Labour - Uxbridge and South Ruislip)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what measures his Department is taking to improve the access people experiencing homelessness have to health and social care services.
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 health and social care services. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guideline 214, titled Integrated health and social care for people experiencing homelessness, sets out clear expectations for services to be accessible and tailored to individual needs, and is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng214/chapter/Recommendations#intermediate-care
We are exploring how best to encourage integrated care boards to adopt and embed this guidance within their commissioning processes.
People experiencing homelessness are considered as an inclusion health group. Inclusion health groups are a key cohort within the locally identified priority ‘PLUS’ populations in NHS England’s Core20PLUS5 framework to reduce healthcare inequalities. Further information on NHS England’s Core20PLUS5 framework is available at the following link:
Integrated care boards are responsible for implementing this approach, aiming to reduce inequalities in health outcomes and improve equitable access to healthcare treatments and services.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle health inequalities experienced by people affected by homelessness.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to building a fairer Britain by tackling the structural inequalities that contribute to poor health, particularly for disadvantaged groups, including those experiencing homelessness. We are working with integrated care systems, local authorities, and directors of public health to embed regional and local solutions to reducing inequalities, ensuring communities have the power and resources to improve health outcomes.
NICE guideline 214, Integrated health and social care for people experiencing homelessness, sets out clear expectations for services to be accessible and tailored to individual needs. This guideline is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng214/chapter/Recommendations#intermediate-care
We are exploring how best to encourage integrated care boards to adopt and embed this guidance within their commissioning processes.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden and Solihull East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how the Government’s upcoming Acquired Brain Injury Action Plan will improve data recording and data access relating to brain injury survivors.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We expect to publish the Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) Action Plan in the first half of 2026. This will allow time to ensure the plan is in line with our 10-Year Health Plan and is robust, action-oriented, and reflects emerging priorities across health, social care, and other relevant sectors.
The plan is designed to take a cross-Government approach and will cover several key areas to improve outcomes for people living with ABI. We are working with Government departments with responsibility for education, justice, housing and homelessness, work and benefits, transport, sport, and defence on the plan.
The plan will ensure more consistent and comprehensive data gathering, alongside better mechanisms for sharing and accessing information. These improvements will support integrated care, inform commissioning decisions, and strengthen evidence-based policy development.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden and Solihull East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what policy areas are in the scope of the upcoming acquired brain injury action plan.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We expect to publish the Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) Action Plan in the first half of 2026. This will allow time to ensure the plan is in line with our 10-Year Health Plan and is robust, action-oriented, and reflects emerging priorities across health, social care, and other relevant sectors.
The plan is designed to take a cross-Government approach and will cover several key areas to improve outcomes for people living with ABI. We are working with Government departments with responsibility for education, justice, housing and homelessness, work and benefits, transport, sport, and defence on the plan.
The plan will ensure more consistent and comprehensive data gathering, alongside better mechanisms for sharing and accessing information. These improvements will support integrated care, inform commissioning decisions, and strengthen evidence-based policy development.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden and Solihull East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department will publish the Acquired Brain Injury Action plan.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We expect to publish the Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) Action Plan in the first half of 2026. This will allow time to ensure the plan is in line with our 10-Year Health Plan and is robust, action-oriented, and reflects emerging priorities across health, social care, and other relevant sectors.
The plan is designed to take a cross-Government approach and will cover several key areas to improve outcomes for people living with ABI. We are working with Government departments with responsibility for education, justice, housing and homelessness, work and benefits, transport, sport, and defence on the plan.
The plan will ensure more consistent and comprehensive data gathering, alongside better mechanisms for sharing and accessing information. These improvements will support integrated care, inform commissioning decisions, and strengthen evidence-based policy development.
Asked by: Danny Beales (Labour - Uxbridge and South Ruislip)
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 potential impact of Housing First interventions for people experiencing homelessness on (a) health outcomes and (b) costs to the NHS.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is committed to improving health outcomes for people experiencing homelessness. We are working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to support those experiencing homelessness with multiple and complex needs.
The Government published an evaluation of the Housing First pilots, including their impact on health outcomes, a copy of which is attached. However, Housing First is not a Department of Health and Social Care policy, therefore the National Health Service has not undertaken analysis of its effectiveness and costs.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 25 November 2025 to Question 92292, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the requirement for pre-visit notifications on the uptake of free eye health screening on people experiencing long term homelessness.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No such assessment has been made. Individuals experiencing homelessness can access NHS sight tests from high street optical practices. NHS England have made it clear to local commissioning teams that a patient without a fixed address should not be prevented from accessing high street NHS sight testing services.