A COUPLE of weeks ago I attended a carol service organised by St Petrocs, the homelessness charity, where we heard very moving accounts of people who, through no fault of their own, had fallen into homelessness.

Homelessness is a political choice and it doubled under the Conservatives. It was allowed to happen. This Labour Government will not stand by and allow this to continue. A cross-government plan has been launched to prevent homelessness, informed by people with lived experience and frontline workers. £3.5-billion has been committed over the next three years to ensure action is taken towards ending homelessness and rough sleeping.

St Mungos Charity chief executive said: “The homelessness strategy published today is a watershed moment and is strongly welcomed by St Mungo’s.”

As the coldest months of the year settle in and Christmas fast approaches, for many, the harsh reality of homelessness becomes harder than ever – whether for someone sleeping in the street, or children struggling in temporary accommodation. The National Plan to End Homelessness has three key pledges to be achieved by the end of this Parliament – halve the number of long-term rough sleepers, end unlawful use of B&Bs for families and prevent more households from becoming homeless in the first place.

It will be underpinned by clear, ambitious goals for lasting change, including a duty on public services to work together to prevent homelessness, a boost to the supply of good-quality temporary homes, and £3.5-billion - £1-billion over and above previous commitments - to support rough sleeping and support services.

Central to the achievement of these objectives is a proposed ‘Duty to Collaborate’ - to be brought forward in legislation - for public bodies to work together to prevent homelessness. This strategy sets clear targets on this issue for the first time, including halving the number who become homeless on their first night out of prison and ensuring that no eligible person is discharged to the street after a hospital stay.

For too long people who have spent years on the streets, often with the most complex needs, have been left without help. This strategy rewires the system to focus support where it’s needed most. A new £124-million supported housing scheme has been launched to get over 2,500 people off the streets as well as preventing people from getting to the streets in the first place.

The plan also includes a new £15-million Long-Term Rough Sleeping Innovation Programme, which will help councils develop new solutions, alongside £37-million of funding for a new ‘Ending Homelessness in Communities’ programme which will increase support and improve vital services provided by the voluntary, community and faith sector at the frontline of this crisis.

Ending the unlawful use of B&Bs for families will bring relief to the 2,070 households trapped beyond the six-week limit in unsuitable conditions – often in one room with no cooking facilities. This builds on the commitment in the recently published Child Poverty Strategy, which ensures mothers and newborn babies are not discharged from hospital into B&B accommodation.