Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Social and Affordable Homes Programme plan to build 300,000 homes over ten years, of which 180,000 will be for social rent, do these targets exclude (a) completions under the AHP 2021-26, (b) non-grant-funded completions, (c) completions funded by right to buy receipts with no grant, and (d) completions provided from developer contributions with no grant.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Accurately forecasting long-term delivery is inherently challenging, but we believe the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP) could deliver around 300,000 social and affordable homes over its lifetime with around 180,000 for Social Rent.

We will set initial targets for Homes England and the GLA after receiving bids from Registered Providers, and will review these targets across the lifetime of the programme to maximise delivery.

In setting targets for Homes England and the GLA, we will only include homes that have been funded under the SAHP. The housing completions listed in the question will not be included.

Our delivery agencies are already taking bids from Registered Providers to deliver homes under the SAHP through the £2 billion new investment we announced in March.

Those delivery agencies published guidance for prospective bidders for the SAHP in November, which can be found on gov.uk here. We plan to open for bids in February 2026.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of people being held in Accident and Emergency departments due to unavailability of local NHS mental health beds on patients.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

While no such specific assessment has been made, we know that in some local areas there is a need for more beds. This is being addressed in part through investment in new units, although this should be considered as part of a whole system transformation approach.

Investment of £75 million of capital funding this year aims to improve inpatient care and help stop mental health patients being sent far from home for treatment. Our neighbourhood mental health centres will also improve continuity of care, drive down waits, and reduce inpatient admissions. These centres provide round the clock, open-access to treatment and support for adults with severe mental health needs. We have opened the first of six 24/7 neighbourhood mental health centres in England, in Tower Hamlets, and other local areas are looking to rollout the model more widely.

We also know that pressures in accident and emergency are best addressed by clear, efficient, and adequately resourced routes to appropriate crisis care. NHS Operational and Planning Guidance for 2025/26 tasks local health systems to improve patient flow through mental health crisis pathways and reduce waits longer than 12 hours in accident and emergency departments. Systems should do this by maximising the use of crisis alternatives and through robust system oversight.

Substantial progress has been achieved in building more robust crisis care pathways across all ages ensuring that people in mental health crisis have access to timely and appropriate support. Key developments include the introduction of the NHS 111 ‘select mental health’ option, investment in alternative crisis services, roll-out of the Mental Health Response Vehicles programme, and full national coverage of 24/7 liaison mental health teams in general acute hospitals. We are also investing up to £120 million to bring the number of mental health emergency departments up to approximately 85. Mental health emergency departments provide rapid assessment and support in a therapeutic setting, helping those with mental health needs get the right care quickly and reducing reliance on emergency departments.