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New £84m cash boost to help prevent homelessness and support families this winter
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Immediate help for children and families in temporary accommodation at heart of new package
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Announced on World Homeless Day, the funding builds on the record £1 billion investment this year to end homelessness and rough sleeping
Thousands of people facing homelessness will be supported by a new £84 million cash injection to councils up and down the country – ahead of winter.
Children and families in temporary accommodation will be prioritised – with the funding to go towards helping families to cover the essentials like food, school travel and laundry. The new funding, which will support children to remain in education, will be announced on World Homeless Day (10 October).
It comes as record levels of households are in temporary accommodation, including nearly 170,000 children. Levels of rough sleeping have more than doubled since 2010.
Areas with the highest pressures, such as London, will be in line for the additional funding to tackle homelessness this year. This comes on top of the government’s almost £1 billion investment to tackle homelessness this year and includes the largest ever investment in prevention services, helping councils intervene early and stop homelessness before it happens.
The investment provides tailored services for those experiencing long-term rough sleeping – including mental health support, drug and alcohol treatment and sustainable accommodation – ensuring people get the help they need to rebuild their lives.
Housing Secretary, Steve Reed said:
Homelessness is a moral stain on our society. Growing numbers of people have been abandoned to sleep rough on the streets and children left in squalid, overcrowded conditions.
This government will not stand idly by and allow that to continue. We will make different choices. That’s why we are investing £1 billion to give homeless people the security of a roof over their heads and get back on track to end homelessness for good.
Today’s investment supports delivery of the Plan for Change, in addition to:
- £950 million to increase the supply of good temporary accommodation.
- Abolishing ‘no fault’ evictions through the landmark Renters’ Rights Bill.
- £39 billion investment to deliver the biggest increase in social and affordable housing in a generation.
Homelessness Minister, Alison McGovern said:
You can’t have a decent life without a decent home. Whether it’s rough sleeping or sofa surfing or, at its worst, children stuck in B&Bs, homelessness in the UK has been too high for too long.
This has to stop. Through our Plan for Change, the UK will build homes and get help to those who need it to put a roof over their head.
We’re providing extra cash now to address a crisis made over the past decade. Both the government’s £39bn to build social and affordable homes and the Child Poverty Strategy to come will tackle the root causes of this problem, but we need action now to stop homelessness getting any worse.
Matt Downie, Chief Executive of Crisis, said:
This funding is very welcome, especially as winter approaches and with homelessness rising. More people are likely to face the prospect of sleeping on cold streets and need support urgently. More parents will be working out how to help their children do homework from cramped and draughty temporary accommodation.
We know that targeted support can make a big difference and help people take their first steps out of homelessness.
We hope this announcement marks another step towards an ambitious homelessness strategy. Alongside a concerted effort to build social housing at scale, and ensuring all parts of Government make their contribution to ending homelessness, we can create a safer and more prosperous future for people and families across the country.
The £84m cash injection includes:
- Nearly £70 million for the Rough Sleeping Prevention and Recovery Grant. This is flexible funding for 62 local authorities to prevent people sleeping rough and help them stay off the streets. This could mean strengthening local services on offer, partnering with charities and community organisations, providing sustainable accommodation to help people sleeping rough and specialist physical and mental health support workers and treatment.
- Nearly £11 million to help families with children living in temporary accommodation access basic facilities like Wi-Fi, laundry, travel passes for school and uniform, and help pay for food and leisure activities. While the number of children and families living in B&Bs continues to fall under this government, more must be done to get those that need it into safe, secure homes. This funding will be directed to 61 areas with the highest numbers of children in temporary accommodation to make sure that they can have access to facilities they need and support with costs while they are there.
- £3 million increase for the Rough Sleeping Drug and Alcohol Treatment element of the wider Drug and Alcohol Treatment, Recovery and Improvement Grant. This funding will be directed to 83 local authorities and a pan-London project, targeted at lifesaving support to people with drug or alcohol related issues who are sleeping rough and at risk of homelessness, including those with co-occurring mental health needs.
- An uplift of £200,000 for the Voluntary, Community and Frontline Sector Grant which supports innovative faith and community-led initiatives such as night shelters to reduce the number of people experiencing repeat homelessness.
This funding is supporting the government’s Plan for Change to drive long-term improvements to health and education, ensuring both families and children can truly thrive and forms part of the government’s forthcoming homelessness and child poverty strategies.
Further information:
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World Homeless Day takes place every year on 10 October, raising awareness of the need to prevent and end homelessness and alleviate the suffering of those experiencing it. World Mental Health Day also takes place on 10 October every year – another important topic in homelessness and rough sleeping prevention.
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Regional breakdown for total funding being allocated to local authorities is as follows:
- London: £36.5m
- South East: £9.6m
- South West: £9.1m
- East of England: £4m
- East Midlands: £5.3m
- West Midlands: £4.4m
- North East: £1.5m
- North West: £8.2m
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Yorkshire & Humber: £5.2m
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Total: £83.8m (to note, £200k is allocated to VCFS organisations and is therefore not included in the above regional breakdown as this is for local authority funding only)
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The latest government figures show positive signs of fewer people needing help from the homelessness system across the last year. Between January and March 2025, 83,450 households were assessed as owed a duty to prevent or relieve homelessness, which is lower compared to the record high in the same period in 2024.
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The number of households with children in B&B has continued to fall since June 2024 when it was 5,910 – at the end of March 2025 it was 3,870.
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There is also a continued drop in households with children in B&Bs for more than the statutory 6 weeks – at the end of June 2024 there were 3,770 households compared to the end of March 2025 where there were 2,300.
- The government also confirmed it will repeal the outdated Vagrancy Act 1824 by Spring next year, to ensure rough sleeping is no longer a criminal offence: Rough sleeping to be decriminalised after 200 years – GOV.UK
Further quotes welcoming the funding:
Sean Palmer, Executive Director at St Mungo’s, said:
“Record numbers of people are currently without somewhere safe and stable to live, and thousands more are at risk of losing their homes, therefore St Mungo’s welcomes the Government’s announcement of a much needed extra £84 million for homelessness services.
“Winter is a particularly challenging time for people affected by homelessness, so this injection of funding will be invaluable. It will help ensure services like St Mungo’s can continue to support people off the streets and into emergency accommodation, where they can rebuild their lives.
“We do now need a clear and comprehensive strategy from the Government setting out how they are going to address this homelessness crisis and, alongside it, longer-term funding. This would allow local authorities and service charities like St Mungo’s to move towards sustainable interventions that end homelessness.
“St Mungo’s stands ready to work alongside Government and the sector to end homelessness for good.”
Simon Gale, CEO at Justlife, said:
“At Justlife, our frontline team see the direct impact that lack of provisions and essentials has on people who live in temporary accommodation for months or even years, putting immense strain on their health and wellbeing. This funding is a really positive step in recognising those realities and helping local areas to respond to them.
“It is now about making sure the money reaches the people and services that can make a difference, so that temporary accommodation is genuinely short, safe and healthy, and that people can move on to a stable home with dignity.”
Dr Laura Neilson, CEO of Shared Health, said:
“We welcome the announcement from MHCLG of nearly £11 million to support families with children living in temporary accommodation to access basic facilities, travel passes for school and uniform, as well as help pay for food and leisure activities.
“Temporary Accommodation often doesn’t provide the 5 basics essential for residents’ wellbeing, health, and ability to move on from homelessness: cooking facilities, laundry access, Wi-Fi, secure storage, and clear information about the situation.
“Homelessness is not just a housing issue, and we hope that this money will be spent on supporting homeless children in TA at a difficult time, including improving their access to health and education.”
