SWEP and winter provision

• SWEP is a locally agreed procedure and offer, followed to minimise harm or death to anyone who m ight be sleeping rough in severe weather, through the provision of emergency accommodation.
• Local Authorities aren’t legally required to provide SWEP, but it’s seen as a humanitarian duty.
• Local Authorities commission and are responsible for opening SWEP.
• “Severe weather” has no single definition for the purposes of triggering emergency accommodation — it can include extreme cold, heat, wind, or rain that increases risk to people sleeping rough.
• With climate change driving unpredictable conditions, Local Authorities should prepare for extreme weather year-round.

Cold weather SWEP

Extreme cold can cause serious health problems and death for those who are exposed overnight or for long periods of time. Historically, SWEP used to be triggered only when temperatures were forecast at 0°C or below for three days. Best practice now takes a broader approach: considering forecasts near zero, rain, snow, wind chill, “feels like” temperature, and icy conditions. There are benefits to opening provision for temperatures that are above freezing as this can be just as harmful, and for maintaining this provision over longer periods.

Heat SWEP

People experiencing homelessness are at a heightened risk of developing heat-related illnesses due their inability to keep cool (owing to a lack of shelter) and reduced access to showers and drinking water. Needs are likely to be more urgent during daylight hours, so a different approach to SWEP may be needed.

Read our guidance on supporting people during hot weather.

Other extreme weather SWEP

High winds can lead to an increased risk of injury through uprooted trees, falling walls, dislodged pieces of roofing, and other debris. LAs should consider the location of local rough sleeping sites and the potential for harm from high winds. This is a particular issue for rural areas where people may be sleeping in tents.

Heavy rainfall can lead to flooding and landslides. People sleeping under bridges, on riverbanks, or near the sea, streams or canals may be particularly at risk, but there may be less obvious flood risks, for example, drains or gullies. As well as increased risk of drowning, being stuck in the rain and being unable to change out of wet clothes/shoes afterwards can lead to a range of health problems, including trench-foot. There is also an increased risk of loss or damage to belongings such as identification documents.

Watch our webinar on responding to severe and extreme weather.

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Planning ahead

• Plans should be agreed by the end of September (or as soon as possible) and should be reviewed annually after each winter.
• LAs should plan provision with voluntary, faith, and community partners.
• LAs should use multi-agency meetings and forums to plan SWEP and winter provision. Key stakeholders will include: Housing Options, other LA teams (e.g., Community Safety, Public Health and Adult Social Care), local housing providers, people with lived experience, outreach teams, health services, police, churches, faith groups, other charities & community groups, and day centres.
• Coordinate with neighbouring LAs, including joint commissioning of support teams.
• Maintain updated information on who is sleeping rough, their needs, and accommodation preferences.
• Monitor temperatures and communicate with partners to ensure provision can be implemented quickly.
• Encourage daily multi-agency communication (emails, calls) to coordinate access to SWEP.

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Accommodation models

Single occupancy accommodation options

Single occupancy options reduce the risk of transmitting illness, offer privacy and increase safety for specific groups, such as women and LGBTQ+ people. They are generally preferred by people experiencing homelessness, support stronger engagement, more personalised support, and lead to better long-term outcomes.

LAs and providers should make every effort to provide self-contained accommodation or single room options for people sleeping rough. Models could include:

• B&B and hotel rooms
• Privately rented houses and flats that have been purchased, leased, or rented by a service provider and used as shared houses/HMOs
• Hostels and supported accommodation allocating specific rooms or areas
• Temporary or modular structures
• Student accommodation
• Hosting models where guests have their own bedroom living in a house with a host.

When planning SWEP and/or winter provision, LAs should check that they have suitable accommodation for different groups e.g., women, couples, young people, and people with dogs. In any type of provision, support should be provided to assist people to meet their needs and achieve positive move-on if possible.

Communal accommodation models

MHCLG’s operating principles for night shelters, prioritise the use of single room or self-contained accommodation options where possible.

The guidance states communal sleeping models should only be considered when single rooms aren’t available, and levels of need justify it. In such cases, providers are advised to consult their local Director of Public Health to ensure measures are in place to reduce the risk of communicable diseases.

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Cold weather can increase health risks such as hypothermia, especially for people with cognitive impairments who may not recognise when they are cold. More information on the health effects from cold weather can be found in the UKHSA’s Adverse Weather & Health Plan.

The Government and UKHSA provide a range of resources to help services to prepare, including a ‘Cold Health Alert’ (CHA) action card, a toolkit to help local organisations plan and deliver warm spaces, and the Winter Health Communications Toolkit developed with NHS England to support stakeholders in promoting winter vaccines, and behaviours that will prevent the spread of infection.

It is also important to link with local GPs or clinics, and where possible arrange health professional visits to accommodation, to help people manage their health over winter.

Covid-19

Although there are no longer specific regulations in place around Covid-19, it is recommended that night shelters apply simple principles to help them stay in control of infection:

• Ensure there is adequate ventilation in communal spaces by uncovering vents and opening doors and windows.
• Guests, staff, and volunteers should wash their hands regularly.
• Accommodation providers should be prepared to support social distancing for those who wish to do so and have face masks for those who wish to wear them.

For more information on Covid-19, including eligibility for testing, read our guidance.

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• Consider how far provision can be funded by the LA (or all LAs in a cross-borough model), including grants like the Rough Sleeper Initiative (RSI).
• The Government has announced an extension of the Night Shelter Transformation Fund for 2025/26 – funding has been allocated to existing 2024/25 grantees to build on and embed the benefits from the original grant programme.
• Some projects may claim Housing Benefit for accommodation. Where possible, work with local Housing Benefit teams to speed up applications. Watch our webinar on Housing Benefit and supported accommodation.

Identifying the need in your area

• Plan based on local need, including unexpected demand or severe weather.
• Use data from outreach teams, partners (e.g. street pastors, wardens), CHAIN or other databases, and StreetLink referrals.
• Engage people sleeping rough to co-produce provision, as this is likely to increase take-up and positive outcomes
• You will need to know not only numbers, but support needs, types of housing and support that will be suitable, and how much provision may be needed for those with specific demographics e.g., women, young people, people with restricted eligibility, couples, LGBTQ+ people and people with dogs.

Recording, monitoring & sharing data

Capturing demographics and support needs of those accessing SWEP and winter provision helps LAs and providers plan ahead. Recording information can be tricky when the service is being delivered quickly, but sharing information between services saves time and resources.

LAs and partners must comply with data protection. Some people may not disclose much at first—this should not exclude them. Keep data collection relevant and, where possible, record:

• Names, contact numbers and emails
• Demographic data: gender identity, age/date of birth, nationality, ethnicity
• Primary support needs
• Length of time sleeping rough
• Previous contact with services, including past use of SWEP/winter provision
• Where individuals move on to when they leave e.g., return to rough sleeping, positive move on etc.

Ideally there will be regular contact from the SWEP Coordinator in order to engage people, including those placed in B&B, in order to find positive move on and to ensure individuals don’t ‘fall between the gaps’. Nobody should be placed and forgotten—there must be clear procedures for closing cases and recording outcomes. Welfare and move-on accountability should rest with a named person or team.

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Communication 

• When SWEP opens, share information quickly via LA/partner websites, social media, local media, and high-footfall platforms (e.g. transport hubs).
• Ensure referral routes are clear to police, outreach, hostels, hospitals, social services, and other teams/services that may be in touch with people sleeping rough.
• Promote StreetLink so the public can refer people seen sleeping rough.

Logistics

• Plan project logistics (opening/closing times, bookings, referrals) well before winter.
• Set clear procedures and share with staff, volunteers, partners, and guests.
• Use a single point of contact/team to coordinate resources and get people into SWEP quickly and safely.
• Consider access to SWEP out of hours so people aren't left waiting for outreach.
• Complete booking in processes with people earlier in the day so staff can fully assess and explain how the service will work.
• Offer later check-outs with links/transport to move-on services.
• Fund travel to help people reach accommodation.
• Keep SWEP open until Monday if activated on a Friday for smoother coordination with other support services.
• Don’t forget the essentials: catering, bedding, laundry etc.
• While policies and procedures should be in place, try to be flexible – it can be difficult for people who are rough sleeping to follow procedures, especially if it means travelling to appointments at fixed times.

SWEP and rough sleeping verification

Good practice during SWEP is to take a flexible and person-centred approach to verification. While some areas may require individuals to be seen by an outreach team to be verified as sleeping rough and therefore eligible for support, during SWEP it is important to prioritise safety and wellbeing.

Local intelligence from partners, and other services should be used to identify and evidence who is sleeping rough, so that people are not forced to be seen outside in dangerous weather conditions simply to be verified. This ensures that emergency accommodation can be accessed quickly and appropriately, reducing risk and upholding the core purpose of SWEP.

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Many people accessing SWEP need more than shelter. Accommodation should be linked to wider support, either on-site or through partner agencies. Where possible, bring staff from other services into the provision so people don’t have to travel. Support might include:

• Access to move-on accommodation
• Physical healthcare
• Mental Health support
• Substance use services
• Benefits advice
• Employment/education
• Immigration advice
• Creative/leisure activities.

Listen to each person, understand their priorities, and build on their strengths as part of a collaborative response. See our resources on strengths-based practice.

Support should always be offered but never made a condition of accessing accommodation. Some may not feel ready, or the support may not fit their needs, and this choice should be respected. The primary aim of SWEP is to keep people safe and reduce immediate harm in severe weather, while creating opportunities to engage with further support at the right time.

People refusing emergency accommodation

Some people may refuse the offer of accommodation during severe weather. There are a range of reasons why people may refuse and, ultimately, individuals with capacity may make choices that other people find hard to understand.

There is a balance to be struck between respecting the choices and autonomy of the individual and continuing to make offers of support and checking on that person’s welfare. Continue to monitor and support people who refuse to accept shelter through making frequent visits and providing resources and information.

Outreach teams should listen carefully to reasons for refusal, explain the health risks of cold weather (particularly for those with poor health or using substances), and explore what type of housing or support offer might encourage acceptance.

Where someone continues to refuse despite clear risk of harm, consider escalating to statutory services such as emergency services and mental health teams. Familiarity with the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and close partnership with health services are vital tools for safeguarding vulnerable individuals during severe weather View our resources, including guidance on the MCA here.

Managing risk

Complete individual safety plans to identify and manage risks, not to justify exclusion. Plans should involve asking people directly how they manage or avoid risky behaviour, what helps them stay safe, and what has worked well for them in the past. Focus on skills and strengths, while also considering risks posed by others in shared settings.

Where possible, brief and relevant information should be requested from an agency that knows the individual. If a high level of risk is identified, this should not be seen as an automatic reason for exclusion, but as an opportunity to put measures in place, to make the provision as safe as possible, or to make an alternative plan, e.g., B&B instead of a room with shared facilities, joint support working etc.

Where serious incidents occur, any decision to ask someone to leave accommodation during severe weather should be made carefully, with reasons recorded and reviewed at the earliest opportunity. Ideally, the individual should be offered alternative accommodation, rather than returning to rough sleeping during extreme weather.

Evictions from Home Office Asylum accommodation during SWEP

From November 2024, the eviction or move on of individuals from asylum accommodation will pause for up to, but no more than, three days when SWEP is activated by a LA.

The process below should be followed during periods of severe weather:

1. Where SWEP is activated in a LA, if individuals at the end of their move on period have not secured onward accommodation and are due to be evicted from asylum accommodation, accommodation providers will not actively pursue eviction, and this will be delayed in line with the below.
2. LAs should notify the Home Office and relevant accommodation provider when SWEP has been activated. Notification should include the start date and, if known, when it is expected to finish.
3. Accommodation will be provided to the individual for a period of up to, but no more than, three days. The LA should seek to source appropriate accommodation for the person following the expiration of the three-day period.
4. LAs should notify Home Office and accommodation providers when SWEP is deactivated.
5. The extension of any accommodation provided to the individual does not impact on the discontinuation of any Home Office financial asylum support and payments will cease as planned.

Move-on

Identify routes out of emergency provision into hostels, private rented, social housing, and specialist accommodation so that people do not have to return to the streets. As well as saving lives, SWEP and extended winter provision should support people off the streets for good.

• Ensure everyone has a homeless assessment with the LA
• Engage immigration advice services for those who have restrictions due to their immigration status
• Commit to finding move-on accommodation for all individuals before they are asked to leave
• Keep provision open until all placements have been made
• Consider how people can be supported around pre-tenancy education whilst they are accessing cold weather provision
• Work with partners to find rent deposits for hostel residents so that hostel spaces are freed up for severe weather clients

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A combination of paid staff and volunteers often works best to respond to the unpredictable nature of SWEP and extended winter projects.

• Professional boundaries training is essential for volunteers. Training should also cover areas such as safeguarding, effective communication and de-escalation of challenging behaviour, risk assessment, mental health, and drug and alcohol use. A range of free webinar recordings on different topics can be found on our knowledge hub as well as free bitesize E-Learning
• If volunteers are to carry out any one-to-one support, they should have a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
• Actively recruit volunteers with lived experience of homelessness and consider diversifying your team (e.g., gender, ethnicity, sexuality, age, languages) to improve service provision.
• Volunteers should not be put at risk. A clear induction, supervision and support pathway should be put in place so that they can raise concerns and develop their skills effectively. There should be simple protocols for responding to incidents, covering on-call access where experienced staff are not present, and contact details for external agencies.

For more information on supporting volunteers, please see our resources.  We also have a leaflet to print and give out to new and existing volunteers who will be involved in rough sleeping outreach teams, downloadable here.

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