The Steve Morgan Foundation has partnered with the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) by providing £80,000 to support their policy work on Housing First to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping in England. Together we have launched a report which sets out a fully costed proposal to expand the Housing First approach nationally following proven results from the pilots.
Homelessness and rough sleeping are on the rise in England
In 2024, rough sleeping was up 20 per cent on the previous year, and 91 per cent since the COVID-19 pandemic. The years following the success of ‘Everyone In’ have been marked by rising homelessness, increasingly visible on the streets of England’s cities and towns. Rough sleeping is just the tip of the iceberg. Last year, English councils spent £2.3 billion on temporary accommodation, a crisis that is pushing local authorities to the point of bankruptcy.
Over the last seven years, Housing First has been shown to be the most effective and well-evidenced intervention to end homelessness for Britain’s most disadvantaged and entrenched rough sleepers. Without a commitment to rolling it out further, the government will struggle to meet its manifesto commitment by the end of the Parliament.
No Place Like Home
In this report, made possible by the Foundation, we make the case for a targeted expansion of Housing First in England, to deliver 5,571 places by 2029/30. This would scale-out the success of the three national pilots in Liverpool City Region, Greater Manchester and West Midlands, ensuring that every English region has access to an equivalent Housing First intervention.
Alongside a cross-government strategy that is focused on prevention, a national Housing First programme will respond to the most severe consequences of homelessness, by targeting the most vulnerable and disadvantaged cohort.
Read the No Place Like Home report here
Steve Morgan CBE said:
“Housing First begins with a simple but powerful principle: a permanent home. From that solid foundation, people can access the tailored, wraparound support they need to address deep-rooted challenges. It’s an approach rooted in common sense, recognising that no one can rebuild their life whilst trapped in an endless cycle of homelessness, emergency accommodation, and crisis services.
“And it works. In my home city of Liverpool, Housing First has been incubated and refined through one of three national pilots.”