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<p>This Government is committed to preventing homelessness and in 2021/22 we provided
£310 million in funding through the Homelessness Prevention Grant to enable local
authorities to implement their duties under the Homelessness Reduction Act. The Act
is the most ambitious reform to homelessness legislation in decades, placing duties
on local housing authorities to take reasonable steps to try to prevent and relieve
a person’s homelessness. These duties apply irrespective of whether a person may be
regarded as being ‘intentionally homeless’.</p><p>Households with a priority need
whose homelessness has not been successfully prevented or relieved, are owed a lesser
duty if they have become homeless intentionally than if they were homeless unintentionally.
This ensures that resources, including temporary accommodation and access to settled
housing, are prioritised effectively and accommodation is there for people who need
it most. In such cases, a duty remains on the local authority to secure temporary
accommodation, to provide reasonable opportunity for the household to find their own
longer-term accommodation. The authority must also provide advice and assistance in
any attempts the applicant might make to secure accommodation.</p><p>Intentionally
homeless applicants are therefore entitled to assistance under the legislation and
can be supported.</p>
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