Homeless Link Director Fiona Colley joined an expert panel to discuss what is needed to end homelessness, during a well-attended fringe event at Labour Party Conference yesterday (29 September 2025).
The event, organised by Labour Housing Group and co-sponsored by Homeless Link and The Riverside Group, came at a timely moment, with the Government currently developing it’s cross-departmental Homelessness Strategy.
Referencing the strategy, Fiona Colley urged the government to use this moment as an opportunity to embed real cross-departmental accountability for reducing homelessness, and to deliver an appropriate, holistic and long-term funding model to end homelessness.
Other speakers echoed this theme, including Darren Murinas, CEO of Expert Citizens – an organisation that champions the role people with lived experience of multiple disadvantage can have in service design.
Darren noted that with a large amount of government funding due to end in March 2026, it wasn’t possible to do serious long-term planning around ending rough sleeping at a local or national level.
Paul Dolan, CEO of The Riverside Group – one of the leading providers of social housing in the UK – expanded on the need for long-term thinking in approaches to funding.
He stated that we as a sector needed to make clear that investment now in homelessness reduction measures – such as more affordable housing and unfreezing Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates – would lead to both better outcomes for people affected by homelessness and long-term savings for the Treasury.
Ed Hume, Head of Housing at Milton Keynes Council, agreed that reform of the LHA rates was important to making long-term structural changes to eliminate homelessness. He also called for wider changes to the benefit system that could make long-term housing more affordable.
Other topics explored included housing quality. Darren Murinas reflected on his own experience of homelessness, and how moving into higher quality accommodation improved his physical and mental health, and given him extra motivation not to return to prison. Fiona added that the drive to improve accommodation standards is welcome, but has overly focused on regulation rather than financing how improvements can be made.
The panel also discussed the need to reflect on the importance of support and supported housing in tackling homelessness, and how revisiting funding models like Supporting People could help ensure a sustainable future for these services.
MP for North Northumberland David Smith reflected on the discussion that the core challenge was to combine the moral mission of ending homelessness and the message that ending homelessness is also the most fiscally responsible policy option.
Concluding the meeting, Mr Smith celebrated the energy in the at-capacity room and encouraged Ministers to harness that energy towards ending homelessness.
Speaking about the event Fiona Colley, Director of Social Change at Homeless Link, stated:
“Having this opportunity to speak about the ambitions, concerns and expertise of Homeless Link’s 750+ members, who provide vital homelessness support and prevention services, has been so valuable. Thanks to fellow panellists for bringing such insight to our discussion, and to everyone who attended and asked thought-provoking questions.”
“I hope Ministers recognise that today’s Fringe event demonstrates real momentum behind the drive to end the homelessness emergency and start building a country free from homelessness. The upcoming Homelessness Strategy is an opportunity for a radically new approach that will turn the tide on years of rising homelessness.”
To find out more about Homeless Link’s Breaking the Cycle campaign to deliver a Homelessness Strategy fit to end homelessness, visit out campaign webpage. Homeless Link members can also join our Campaigns Network.
