Statutory guidance issued on duty to produce Local Supported Housing Strategy

The guidance is issued under section 2 of the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023, which says that a local housing authority in England “must (a) carry out a review of the supported exempt accommodation in its district, and (b) in the light of that review, publish a strategy, to be known as a ‘supported housing strategy’, for the provision of supported exempt accommodation in its district.”

On the relationship between social services authorities and local housing authorities, the guidance says: "Social services authorities have a duty to assist their local housing authorities as reasonably required with producing their Local Supported Housing Strategy, and consider these strategies when exercising their functions, ensuring housing and social care planning are aligned.

“Where housing and social care functions sit within the same authority, the strategy applies across both; where they are separate, social services authorities must have regard to the strategies of all relevant housing authorities.”

The guidance notes that whilst the 2023 Act places a duty to produce strategies on local housing authorities, under the provisions of the Local Government Act 1972 local authorities may arrange for the discharge of this function by any other local authority, such as a county council.

“Local authorities are encouraged to develop strategies at a strategic or combined authority level – either in preparation for transitioning to single-tier authorities under Local Government Reorganisation plans, or to collaborate with neighbouring authorities to pool and allocate resources more effectively,” it says.

Local authorities are told that they should build on a national framework structured around four components and look to reflect local needs and priorities:

• strategic priorities – overarching vision and direction for supported housing
• partnerships – arrangements for effective collaboration and delivery
• needs assessment – assessment of supply and demand
• delivery plan – plan for implementing the strategy

Local authorities will receive New Burdens funding to develop, monitor and review their Local Supported Housing Strategy.

The statutory guidance says the plan is for strategies to be published by 31 March 2027.

Writing in the foreword to the guidance, Minister of State for Local Government and Homelessness Alison McGovern said: “Strategic planning is at the heart of delivering the right housing solutions for people with support or care needs to empower them to recover from crisis or live independently. Supported housing plays a vital role in this, providing better outcomes for people and wider public services, including through preventing homelessness, reducing pressure on social care and enabling timely hospital discharge.

“The Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023 introduced a new statutory duty for local authorities to formulate and publish a Local Supported Housing Strategy. The strategies require collaboration with partners to understand the local landscape of supported housing, including supply, unmet need and future demand, and to develop a strategy which sets out the direction of travel to meet identified need. This guidance provides a national framework for the strategies, which local authorities should build on based on local priorities.

“Through strong local partnerships – bringing together housing, health, social care, local services, and residents – we can ensure that the right types of supported housing are planned for and delivered to effectively support residents. The Local Supported Housing Strategies will also provide better data for supported housing, strengthening the evidence base for funding and decision making both locally and nationally.”