New investment and proposed legislation also aims to reduce use of poor quality emergency and temporary accommodation and boost prevention services
The government has today announced an ambition to halve the number of people experiencing long-term rough sleeping in England by the end of this parliament as part of a £3.5bn plan to tackle homelessness.
The new ‘National Plan to End Homelessness’ also aims to stop the unlawful use of bed and breakfasts for families and prevent more households from becoming homeless in the first place as part of its three key pledges.
According to government statistics, there were an estimated 9,292 people sleeping rough over the month of September 2025, with 37% sleeping rough long-term.
Steve Reed, housing secretary, said: “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.”
The cross-governmental plan proposes to embed a ‘duty to collaborate’ in legislation, which means public bodies across different sectors will have to work together to prevent homelessness linked to prisons, social care and hospital discharges.
Meanwhile, a new £124m supported housing scheme aims to get more than 2,500 people off the streets and prevent rough sleeping in the first place. This is backed by £950m of funding via the fourth round of the local authority housing fund to boost the supply of good-quality temporary homes.
Kate Henderson, chief executive of the National Housing Federation and member of the government’s homelessness and rough sleeping expert group, said: “We’re pleased the government has recognised the role of supported housing in reducing homelessness by dedicating funding to support some of those with the most complex needs. However, not-for-profit supported housing providers have faced significant cuts to funding for support services, despite increasing costs, and demand for their services increasing. The country now faces a significant shortfall of supported homes.”
The plan also includes a new £15m long-term rough sleeping innovation programme, which will help councils develop solutions, alongside £37m of funding for a new ending homelessness in communities programme to increase and improve the homelessness services provided by the voluntary, community and faith sector.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has also invested an extra £50m of 2025/26 funding to be allocated to local authorities through its homelessness prevention grant.
Gavin Smart, chief executive at the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH), said: “CIH welcomes the new national homelessness strategy and investment in affordable homes. But with homelessness at record levels we hoped to see bolder action, including unfreezing housing benefit to support families facing pressure today while new homes are delivered.”
A national workforce programme will provide frontline teams with training and advice.
The strategy’s progress will be tracked through national reports, overseen by the inter-ministerial group.
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