A home for all in Norwich North and across Britain is within reach

I believe it is important that everyone has access to a safe and affordable home to live in. The manifesto I stood on committed to tackle rough sleeping and expand Housing First. I am confident this position is being delivered.

I was reassured by the level of support there has been for those experiencing homelessness during the pandemic. The Secretary of State for Housing was absolutely clear on this, stating that “no one should lose their home as a result of the coronavirus”.

Part of this was about the rental sector. The Government acted decisively and introduced a three-month ban on evictions. Landlords will still have a duty to assess the effect of Covid-19 on their tenants, including the financial impact and their vulnerability, if they wish to bring an application to seek possession of their property.

The Government has also committed to stop landlords having the option of using a ‘no fault’ section 21 eviction, as a priority. This will represent a generational change to tenancy.

People who do not meet the necessary immigration and residence conditions, are still provided with help and can apply to have no recourse to public funds restrictions lifted on their visa. Councils are also allowed to provide further help to people if they meet the required immigration conditions.

EEA and Swiss nationals can also receive support for housing, as can anyone who has settled status through the EU settlement scheme, if they’re a permanent resident in the UK, have worker or self-employed status or are looking for work.

Looking ahead, now things are getting back to normal, it is right that processes return to normal too.

New funding from the Treasury has been announced to provide interim support for the 15,000 vulnerable people who were given accommodation during the pandemic.

More broadly, the Conservative Government supported the Homelessness Reduction Act, which in 2017 introduced some of the biggest changes to the rights of homeless people in England for 15 years. It effectively put an extra duty on councils to prevent homelessness, amongst other important changes.

I am reassured that locally in Norwich, both councils have plans in place in order to address homelessness.

Firstly, Broadland District Council have partnered with South Norfolk, to develop a project called First Step, which is designed to address the needs of rough sleepers across the two districts. There are rough sleeper coordinators who provide support and assess the needs of anyone who is found to be rough sleeping. They provide support on how to engage with services and help them seek emergency accommodation, provide food and clothing to those who need immediate assistance and more settled accommodation.

Like Broadland, Norwich City Council also employ rough sleep coordinators. Norwich City Council’s aim is to prevent homelessness in the first instance, through the provision of specialist housing and assistance to all of those facing homelessness in the city. The council provides a variety of advice including a

homeless prevention fund, a private sector leasing scheme, mediation, legal advice and referrals to supported accommodation. Additionally, they also provide funding to the Learning Employment and Accommodation Project which helps tackle the root cause of homelessness.

The Government is investing a further £9.5 billion into the Affordable Homes Programme. This includes both the right to buy and shared ownership, which in total will allocate £12.2 billion of grant funding from 2021-2022 to support with the development of affordable homes across the whole of England.

Both nationally and locally there has been continued support for those who are homeless and with the Government’s plans in place I am confident this will help address homelessness.