A group of Labour MPs have written to the government calling on them to introduce Housing First. (Alamy)
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Exclusive: A group of Labour MPs has written to the government calling for Housing First to be rolled out nationwide as part of the upcoming homelessness strategy.
The letter, signed by 41 Labour backbenchers, and seen by PoliticsHome, urges housing secretary Steve Reed and minister Alison McGovern to make it a “central component” of the government’s plan to tackle rough sleeping.
It describes Housing First as in keeping with “Labour values we believe in”, adding that it would help the Keir Starmer government “set a roadmap to succeed on rough sleeping in the same way ” that the previous Labour administration led by Tony Blair did.
A group of Labour metro mayors is soon expected to declare support for the letter, PoliticsHome understands. Manchester’s Andy Burnham and Liverpool’s Steve Rotheram have previously argued for Housing First to be expanded across the country. Supporters are also hopeful that local leaders of other parties will back the idea.
Housing First, which provides housing to people who are homeless, operates on seven key principles, including the right to a home and giving individuals control over the type and location of their housing.
The policy was commissioned by some local authorities in England in 2010 before being expanded to regional trials in Manchester, Liverpool and the West Midlands in 2017. The pilot, which is still in place in Manchester and Liverpool, is seen as a success by leaders in the regions. In late 2023, Burnham told PoliticsHome that it had been crucial to Manchester’s success in bringing down rough sleeping numbers despite figures rising nationally.
Despite this, national rollout was not in Labour’s 2024 manifesto, despite calls for its inclusion.
The letter sent on Wednesday says that while the Labour MPs “welcome” the government’s commitment to a national homelessness strategy, which is expected to be published next year, they “strongly encourage” ministers to include Housing First as a core element.
“As you have both made clear, rebuilding a prevention-first system and restoring effective partnership between central and local government is essential if we are to turn the tide on homelessness in this Parliament.
“As part of this work, we strongly encourage you to ensure that Housing First is a central component of the new strategy,” it says.
The letter adds: “The evidence from the three major pilots in Greater Manchester, the West Midlands and Liverpool City Region is clear: Housing First delivers for people with the most complex needs who are currently cycling in and out of rough sleeping, hostels, crisis healthcare and the criminal justice system.
“Independent evaluations show tenancy sustainment rates approaching 80–90 per cent, significant reductions in A&E admissions, fewer interactions with police and emergency services, and marked improvements in wellbeing and long-term stability.”
Labour MP and co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Ending Homelessness, Paula Barker, who organised the letter, said Housing First was “a hugely important initiative”.
“It’s not just a house and setting people up,” she told PoliticsHome. “It also provides that wrap-around support and care that so often is missing when people are moving from a source of homelessness back into accommodation.”
She added: “It is really about the prevention element, making ministers see how important that is, and ensuring that they put that front and centre of any strategy that they develop.”
PoliticsHome has contacted the government for comment.
Last month, PoliticsHome reported the government had held its first meetings on homelessness with MPs and stakeholders since the departure of Angela Rayner as housing secretary in the September cabinet reshuffle. The meetings came after complaints from homelessness charities that government engagement on homelessness had dropped since Rayner’s departure.
Analysis of government data by the Centre of Social Justice published last week found that rough sleeping was 94 per cent higher in July of this year than it was in July 2021.
The Labour MPs who have signed the letter are as follows:
Paula Barker
Kate Osborne
Dr Simon Opher
Kim Johnson
Jonathan Brash
Jon Trickett
Mary Glindon
Danny Beales
Yasmin Qureshi
Patrick Hurley
Bell Ribeiro-Addy
Neil Duncan-Jordan
Alex Sobel
Dr Allison Gardner
Chris Hinchliff
Afzal Khan
Margaret Mullane
Navendu Mishra
Marie Rimmer
Nadia Whittome
David Smith
Jeff Smith
Brian Leishman
Chris Webb
Connor Naismith
Ian Byrne
Ian Lavery
Karl Turner
Andrew Cooper
Derek Twigg
Gill Furniss
Mary Kelly Foy
Richard Burgon
Grahame Morris
Sean Woodcock
Justin Madders
Maya Ellis
Clive Lewis
Peter Dowd
Charlotte Nichols
Lee Barron
