I had the privilege of leading a debate in Westminster Hall on one of the most pressing issues facing our country: homelessness. It is an issue that affects every community in the country. It crosses party lines and demands a united, practical response.
I began by welcoming the new Minister to her post and acknowledging her early work to tackle child poverty and homelessness. Her commitment gives me hope that we can move forward together with purpose, because if there was one clear message from coming out of the debate, it was that compassion and determination exist on all sides of the House.
Homelessness is not just a policy problem. It is a human tragedy that plays out every day in our constituencies, in the letters we receive and on the streets outside Parliament. This morning, around 4,600 people woke up outside, not knowing where they would sleep tonight. More than 132,000 families are living in temporary accommodation and over 172,000 children will go to bed tonight in a room that is not their own. These are not numbers on a page. They are people’s lives suspended in uncertainty.
Homelessness is not inevitable. It happens because systems fail, because help comes too late and because too often, decisions are made without thinking about the long-term consequences.
Through the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Ending Homelessness, we have developed a clear framework that shows what works. It rests on three pillars: prevention, rapid rehousing, and proper support.
Prevention means stepping in early. Every person with experience of homelessness can point to a moment when it could have been avoided if help had arrived in time. When I introduced the Homelessness Reduction Act, my goal was to make prevention the heart of the system. Since it came into force, it has helped more than 1.7 million people to stay in or find a home. That is progress, but we must build on it.
Rapid rehousing ensures that when people do lose their homes, they are not left in limbo for months or years. We need more social and genuinely affordable housing so that families can move quickly into somewhere stable. Too many are trapped in temporary accommodation that damages health and hope. Everyone deserves a place where they can put down roots.
Support means helping people to rebuild their lives once they have a roof over their head. That includes proper regulation of supported housing, which is why I brought forward the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act. The law is there to protect residents and drive out bad providers who exploit the helpless. It now needs to be implemented properly, with the right guidance and funding, which I’m urging the Government to get on with, before too many more vulnerable individuals are abused.
Ending homelessness will only be possible if government departments work together. Health, justice, welfare, and housing all have a role to play. Prevention is not only right morally, but economically wise. Keeping someone in their home costs far less than dealing with the fallout after they lose it.
I was delighted to witness in the debate, the genuine sense of shared purpose across Parliament. We may disagree on many things, but on this we are united. No one wants to see people sleeping rough or children growing up without a secure place to call home.
Homelessness is not a fact of modern life that we must accept. It is a challenge we can meet if we act together, with courage and compassion. Every person deserves the dignity of a safe home. Every child deserves stability and a future built on security, not fear. We have the knowledge, the evidence and the collective will to make that happen.
Every person deserves the dignity of a safe home – we can end homelessness for good
