Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has welcomed the introduction of a law to regulate supported housing and is calling on the Government to give the Bill parliamentary time.
The Supported Housing (Regulation) Bill was introduced earlier today by Kerry McCarthy MP (Labour, Bristol East). It is a Private Member’s Bill in the name of McCarthy with co-sponsors from across political parties, including Gwynne.
The Bill would regulate supported housing, including changing standards of local authority oversight and the enforcement of standards of accommodation and support in supported housing. It would also prohibit the placing of children in care in unregulated accommodation.
The Bill comes following many stories from across England of unscrupulous landlords who have moved into the supported sector purely with a view to profiting from the much higher rates of housing benefit, leaving vulnerable people without the support they need.
Andrew Gwynne said:
“This is a really important Bill. I’ve heard far too many horror stories from the supported housing sector.
“Whilst there are many fantastic providers, we need to ensure that all providers are meeting the high standards that vulnerable residents need, and that is what this Bill does.
“I’d like to congratulate Kerry for introducing this Bill to Parliament. We now need the Government to give their support and parliamentary time to the legislation so that we can get this on to the statute books.”