Last updated: 21 May 2025
What is it?
This document is a formal submission from Homeless Link in response to a joint consultation from the Department of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).
The consultation, which has now closed, sought views and feedback on proposals around the implementation of the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act.
Our submission was sent to the relevant Departments in May 2025.
Who is it for?
This document is written for MHCLG and DWP Ministers and Officials, responding directly to the questions they have posed in relation to proposals for the new regulation of the supported housing sector and associated changes to Housing Benefit.
The document sets out that while Homeless Link and our members are supportive of the aim to raise standards in the supported accommodation sector, there are a number of issues with the proposals in their current form that risk undermining the supply of good supported accommodation for people experiencing homelessness.
It may also be relevant for others wishing to influence national and local government in this area, as well as local authorities and academics or other researchers.
Key takeaways
Homeless Link and our members are supportive of efforts to raise standards in homelessness supported accommodation and the sector more widely. We recognise and welcome the need for national standards, and a workable way of achieving and enforcing them, to bring up the overall quality of provision, tackle the poor providers and ensure more consistency across the country.
However, the Government’s proposals fail to consider that these changes will not be possible without proper funding and resource for the support element of supported accommodation, and investment in the sector more widely. New regulation will create significant financial and administrative burdens for organisations that have been underfunded for years and may struggle to remain viable.
Moreover, several of the proposals are incompatible with the way that homelessness services operate and the contexts they function in.
In particular, there are real issues caused by:
- The ‘local need’ standard
- How a ‘scheme’ is defined
- Who the ‘licensee’ would be in models where the landlord is not the same as the support provider
- The proposed way this will be implemented at a local authority level.
In their current form, the plans pose a severe threat to the homelessness supported accommodation sector and risk undermining the good intentions of the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act by reducing the supply of decent services that people rely on. Homeless Link has set out a number of solutions and mitigations in our response. We encourage the Government to consider adopting our alternative proposals
