Published date 11 December 2025

Mayor backs new plan to end homelessness

Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England
The Mayor of the West of England has welcomed a new National Plan to End Homelessness, backed by £3.5 billion of funding over the next three years. The strategy sets out key national pledges to halve long-term rough sleeping, end the unlawful use of B&Bs for families, and prevent more households from becoming homeless.
The plan has been shaped by people with lived experience of homelessness, frontline organisations, and those involved in the Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness. With winter underway and Christmas approaching, the pressures facing people experiencing or at risk of homelessness are particularly acute. Nationally, a family is made homeless or threatened with homelessness every five minutes.

Key national measures announced today include:

  • A proposed ‘Duty to Collaborate’ requiring public bodies to work together to prevent homelessness, including targets to halve the number of people becoming homeless on their first night out of prison and to ensure that no eligible person is discharged to the street after a hospital stay.
  • Action to halve the number of people experiencing long-term rough sleeping, supported by £124 million for new supported housing places for more than 2,500 people across England.
  • £114 million of new funding for mayors and strategic authorities, with allocations due to be announced in the Local Government Finance Settlement, on top of duties to produce a Spatial Development Strategy.
  • A new £15 million Long-Term Rough Sleeping Innovation Programme and £37 million Ending Homelessness in Communities Programme to strengthen support, including through voluntary, community and faith organisations.
  • Steps to end the unlawful use of B&Bs for families, with £950 million through the Fourth Round of the Local Authority Housing Fund to boost the supply of good-quality temporary homes, and an expanded £30 million Emergency Accommodation Reduction Programme.
  • An additional £50 million Homelessness Prevention Grant for local authorities in 2025/26.

This strategy sits alongside recent national reforms, including the Renters’ Rights Act, which ends Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions, and wider investment in social and affordable housing.

Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, said:

“Homelessness has a deep and lasting impact on people’s lives, and we see the reality of that here in the West of England. This national strategy and funding are an important step forward – giving the resources to strengthen prevention, provide the temporary homes families desperately need, and putting collaboration and lived experience at the heart of tackling homelessness.

“Our regional partners including local councils, charities, and frontline teams work tirelessly to help people in incredibly difficult circumstances. With this renewed focus, we have a real opportunity to prevent more people from reaching crisis point and ensure that families and individuals get the secure, safe housing they deserve. I’m determined that our region plays its full part in delivering this national ambition to end homelessness."

Announcing the plan, Housing Secretary Steve Reed said:  

“Homelessness is one of the most profound challenges we face as a society, because at the heart, it’s about people. Families deserve stability, children need a safe place to grow, and individuals simply want the dignity of a home.  

“This strategy is shaped by the voices of those who’ve lived through homelessness and the frontline workers who fight tirelessly to prevent it.   

“Through our new strategy we can build a future where homelessness is rare, brief, and not repeated. With record investment, new duties on public services, and a relentless focus on accountability, we will turn ambition into reality.”  

Homelessness Minister Alison McGovern said:     

“Everyone deserves a roof over their head. And for those experiencing the worst of homelessness right now – our children – they deserve a place to play and a bedroom to do their homework in. It's our collective responsibility to make that a reality, for anyone at risk of homelessness, be it sofa-surfing or getting stuck on the streets.  

“By working together including government, local leaders, charities, and communities, we can stop homelessness before it happens and ensure that when people do fall into crisis, support is swift and effective.    

“The prize is big. Right now, taxpayers are paying the price of failure, with temporary accommodation costs skyrocketing. And the next generation of British young people can't succeed without the space they need. This strategy sets us on a better path – to save money and change lives.”  

The national strategy also requires every council to publish a tailored homelessness action plan and will introduce a National Workforce Programme to support frontline teams with training and expert advice. Progress will be monitored nationally through the Inter-Ministerial Group.

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