Sleeping Rough: Coronavirus

(asked on 23rd October 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to ensure the provision of covid-secure accommodation for rough sleepers over winter 2020-21.


Answered by
Kelly Tolhurst Portrait
Kelly Tolhurst
This question was answered on 2nd November 2020

During the pandemic, we have worked closely with local authorities and the sector to offer vulnerable people safe accommodation and support. That work is ongoing and in September, we had successfully supported over 29,000 people, with 10,000 in emergency accommodation and nearly 19,000 provided with settled accommodation or move on support.

On 13 October, we announced additional winter support, to give local areas the tools they need to support vulnerable rough sleepers this winter. This includes a new £10 million Cold Weather Fund for local areas and £2 million in funding for the faith, communities and voluntary sector to bring forward self-contained and COVID secure accommodation this winter.

We have worked extensively with Public Health England (PHE) to provide Operating Principles for the sector to help them open shelters as safely as possible where necessary, when self-contained accommodation cannot be made available and when local partners agree that it is the right thing to do.

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