Ministers aim to offer everyone sleeping rough in England a safe route off the streets or wider support by Christmas, with funding intended to sustain help through the rest of the parliament.
The UK government plans an additional £432 million to tackle rough sleeping—people sleeping on the streets—with Prime Minister Andy Burnham saying support should continue beyond Christmas through the rest of the current parliament.
The commitment builds on an initial £442 million from Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government budgets, due to be allocated before March 2027. The Guardian described the plan on 25 October, ahead of a Downing Street summit and the forthcoming budget.
| Funding | Amount | Timing and status |
|---|---|---|
| Initial ministry funding | £442 million | To be allocated before March 2027. |
| Additional budget commitment | £432 million | Planned in the forthcoming budget to help sustain support through the rest of the parliament. |
Burnham’s Christmas ambition is to offer every person sleeping rough in England a safe route off the streets or wider support. That is a pledge to offer help, rather than an announcement that everyone has secured accommodation.
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Conservative shadow housing secretary Katie Lam criticised the extra spending, saying Burnham had failed to solve rough sleeping in Greater Manchester. She argued that the budget should instead cut taxes and ease living costs.
Specialist teams working with people sleeping on the streets and new accommodation spaces were already operating in Coventry. Further provision was being rolled out in Plymouth and Camden over the following weeks.
The National Housing Federation is working with housing associations to identify at least 2,000 potential homes and bed spaces, including empty properties that could be brought back into use. This is a pledge to identify possible accommodation, not a count of spaces already available.
Burnham is due to bring businesses, charities, housing providers and local leaders together at Downing Street on Monday 26 October. The summit will focus on lasting changes, with the additional funding commitment to be included in the forthcoming budget.
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