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Government Departments
Department for Communities and Local Government
The government department concerned with homelessness is the Department for Communities and Local Government , DCLG, (formerly part of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, ODPM). It’s official remit is to “promote community cohesion and equality”, to do this it has responsibility for housing, urban regeneration, planning and local government.
Ruth Kelly MP was appointed Secretary of State with overall control of the DCLG. The Prime Minister’s letter of appointment to Ruth Kelly sets out his priorities for the new department. Ruth Kelly made a speech on her vision for the department at the DCLG stakeholder event on the first morning of the new department. She is supported by the DCLG Ministerial Team. Currently, the key ministers concerned with homelessness issues are Yvette Cooper MP, the Minister for State with responsibility for Housing & Planning, and Phil Woolas MP, Minster for State with responsibility for Local Government and Community Cohesion.
The Homelessness and Housing Support Directorate is the part of the civil service responsible for government strategy on homelessness. It is lead by Terrie Alafat. You can see their team on the DCLG organisation chart .
The government strategy on homelessness, key statistics and other relevant publications, as well as information for local authorities can be found on the Homelessness and Housing Support Directorate's website . Links to homelessness-related guidance from the DCLG can be found in our DCLG Guidance briefing .
What we do
Homeless Link works directly with Ministers in the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) and civil servants within the Homelessness and Housing Support Directorate to highlight emerging issues and feedback information from our members about the situation "on the ground". We have found this to be the best way to secure swift and tangible improvements in service delivery, bringing more immediate benefits to service users.
At the stakeholder event on 9 May 2006, the first morning of the new department, ministers, the DCLG management board and key stakeholders came together. Homeless Link’s Chief Executive, Jenny Edwards, was invited to make a speech at the meeting as a key stakeholder.
"Homeless Link has succeeded in raising issues with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Homelessness Select Committee – something we could never have achieved on our own."
Daniel Currie, Director, St Giles Trust (London)
Other Departments
Of course, homelessness is a far wider issue than simply housing. Other departments have responsibility for areas affecting homelessness.
- The Office for Social Exclusion is of strong relevance, as homelessness itself is an extreme form of social exclusion. Hilary Armstrong MP was appointed to the newly created role of Cabinet Office Minister for Social Inclusion in June 2006. The priorities for the new role are set out the Prime Minister's letter of appointment to Hilary Armstrong . She will be supported by a minister for the Third Sector.
Examples of other departments which at times cover homelessness issues include:
- The Department of Health works to improve access to health services for people experiencing homelessness, as well as having responsibility for mental health and substance abuse problems, which are often interlinked with homelessness. Visit our health pages for more information about health and homelessness.
- The Home Office works on anti-social behaviour and immigration, which are issues often connected to problems of homelessness.
- The Ministry of Defence works to ensure servicemen do not become homeless when discharged from the armed forces.