The keys first: eight Westminster tenancies, and the idea England is now funding

I keep an eye out for stories where you can see exactly what changed a life, and who did the work. Michael's story has both. He became homeless in Plymouth in 2022 and decided on impulse to come to London. His first week in the capital he spent on the pavement without even a sleeping bag. 1

He moved between the street and temporary accommodation until a place came through the government's Rough Sleeping Accommodation Programme. That tenancy was time-limited, and as the end of it approached the uncertainty returned. Then he heard about Solo Homes, the Westminster version of an approach called Housing First, run by The Connection at St Martin-in-the-Fields. 1

Michael was assigned a support worker named Gen. Within weeks he had viewed a flat and signed a tenancy agreement. His rent comes out of his benefits, and the charity covers his care needs, including mental health support. "Since then it's just been amazing," he says. He has stayed off the streets since. 1

Services usually ask a person to deal with addiction, mental illness or debt before they are judged ready for a permanent home. Housing First swaps the order: the home comes first and support follows. Keeping that home is independent of whether the tenant accepts treatment or reaches any particular milestone, which is the part that separates this model from a hostel bed with conditions attached. 1

The support that comes with it is practical and wide: mental health care, drug and alcohol treatment, benefits advice, help reconnecting with family and community. The Connection describes the housing as maintained whatever else is going on in a person's life. 2

A Solo Homes worker carries five people at a time, enough to help set up a tenancy, sort out bills and get someone established in a neighbourhood they have never lived in before. 3

Starting in 2018, the government funded three large Housing First pilots in Greater Manchester, Liverpool City Region and the West Midlands. Together they supported more than 1,000 people whose homelessness had become entrenched; 86% of the people researchers followed had been living in unstable or precarious circumstances before they joined. 14

The evaluation recorded the limits too. After a year, researchers found no statistically significant reduction in overall drug use or alcohol dependence, and employment stayed low; years into the programme, many participants were still being treated for other health conditions. Government researchers concluded that recovery tends to be slow and uneven for people who have spent long stretches on the streets. 1

In Westminster, the numbers are small. Since February 2025, The Connection says it has moved eight long-term rough sleepers into tenancies through Solo Homes, and all eight still have them. 1

On 18 August 2026 the Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, announced a £442m Rough Sleeping Programme for England, with a promise that everyone sleeping rough would be offered a route off the streets before Christmas. The money splits into £255.5m for immediate routes off the street and £178m for settled accommodation with intensive support, plus £8.4m for the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund. More than 1,000 settled homes are expected over three years. 56

The guidance issued alongside it names Housing First, or provision informed by it, as one of the routes councils can use for the settled-accommodation funding. It also asks local areas to plan properly for women sleeping rough, who are undercounted in the official statistics and face higher risks of violence and exploitation. 6

The June 2026 figures show how much is left to do. An estimated 8,748 people slept rough in England at some point during the month, the highest figure for that time of year, and 3,253 of them, or 37%, had been sleeping rough long term. Westminster recorded more than any other local authority, nearly twice the second-highest. 7

London shows where the bottleneck sits. Between April and June, 3,959 people were recorded sleeping rough in the capital. Of those who moved into accommodation during that period, 80% went into temporary housing and 20% into settled housing. 1

The government's evaluation named the barriers to scaling the model: available homes, long-term funding, and access to specialist mental health services. Cllr Anthony Okereke, London Councils' executive member for housing and homelessness, welcomed the investment and added that it needs to be matched by "a sustained focus on prevention and housing supply". 1

Michael describes the change in plainer terms. "After three years of uncertainty, it was just nice to know I don't have to worry about it anymore. I've got stability now," he says. "The best thing about this is you've got someone to help you and you can feel stable." 1

He has a front door, furniture he helped build himself, and no deadline telling him when to leave. The Connection sets out how to get help if you are sleeping rough in central London, and how to support the work.