Every parliamentary written question tabled by Adam Dance this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 21–40 of 53 · Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to increase the supply of one-bedroom social housing for young people in (a) Yeovil constituency (b) Somerset and (c) England.
My Department has held no recent discussions with local planning authorities regarding specific barriers to delivering one-bedroom social rented homes for young people. I otherwise refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 101227 on 7 January 2026.
Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had with local authorities in England on barriers to delivering one-bedroom social homes for young people.
My Department has held no recent discussions with local planning authorities regarding specific barriers to delivering one-bedroom social rented homes for young people. I otherwise refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 101227 on 7 January 2026.
Communities and Local Government, what additional support he will provide to rural local authorities, including Somerset Council, to manage the cost of temporary accommodation provision.
The government is providing £3.6 billion funding for homelessness services from 2026/27 to 2028/29, including more than £2.2 billion for local authorities to prevent and address homelessness and rough sleeping through the Homelessness, Rough Sleeping and Domestic Abuse Grant, as well as £969 million for temporary accommodation within the Revenue Support Grant. You can find local authority level allocations on gov.uk here. We published our national strategy, A National Plan to End Homelessness, in December 2025. You can find our plan to tackle homelessness on gov.uk here.
Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 13 March 2026 to Question 119636 on Shops: Rural Areas, what his planned timeline is for the publication of a new High Streets Strategy.
We will publish the High Streets Strategy later this year. The Strategy will be backed by £301 million investment in High Street Innovation Partnerships to help reimagine and revive some of the country’s most struggling high streets. We will set out further information in due course
Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to help tackle furniture poverty in rural communities across (a) Yeovil constituency, (b) Somerset and (c) England.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 84054 on 3 November 2025.
Communities and Local Government, whether he is taking steps is to strengthen legal protections for those with shared ownership properties in Yeovil constituency.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 101061 on 6 January 2026.
Communities and Local Government, what steps is he taking to strengthen protections for owners of shared ownership properties in Yeovil constituency from unaddressed instances of dangerous mould.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 101061 on 6 January 2026.
Communities and Local Government, what proportion of funding was allocated to local authorities in the South West for road maintenance for 2025-26.
The 2026-27 Local Government Finance Settlement will make available £78 billion in Core Spending Power for local authorities in England, a 6.1% increase compared to 2025-26. The majority of funding in the Settlement is unringfenced recognising that local leaders are best placed to identify local priorities. The Department for Transport has also allocated £300 million in capital funding for highways maintenance to local authorities in the South West for the 2025/26 financial year.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the social housing sector in (a) Yeovil constituency, (b) Somerset and (c) England.
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 28 January 2026 (HCWS1283)
Communities and Local Government, if he will make emergency financial assistance available through the Bellwin scheme to local authorities impacted by Storm Chandra.
I am always willing to consider local authority requests for financial assistance under the Bellwin Scheme.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the experiences of neurodivergent children living in temporary accommodation in Yeovil constituency
Homelessness is far too high, and this can have a devastating impact on those affected, including neurodivergent children. Accommodation provided to homeless households must be suitable to their needs. The government collects and publishes data on the support needs of households owed a homelessness duty (which includes households with support needs due to learning disabilities). In October 2025 the government announced £10.9 million funding for 61 councils with the highest levels of children in temporary accommodation. This funding will be used to increase access to support and services for families and make a tangible impact on their quality of life whilst they remain in need. This will deliver positive benefits for education and health outcomes, including school attendance. Through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, we are introducing a single unique identifier for children nationally to help improve information sharing and safeguarding, which means practitioners and services working with families and children must receive and share relevant information about children and families they support, including to assess safeguarding risks effectively. We will introduce a new duty on councils to notify schools, health visitors and GPs that a child is in temporary accommodation.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the number of neurodivergent children living in temporary accommodation in (a) Yeovil constituency (b) Somerset and (c) England.
Homelessness is far too high, and this can have a devastating impact on those affected, including neurodivergent children. Accommodation provided to homeless households must be suitable to their needs. The government collects and publishes data on the support needs of households owed a homelessness duty (which includes households with support needs due to learning disabilities). In October 2025 the government announced £10.9 million funding for 61 councils with the highest levels of children in temporary accommodation. This funding will be used to increase access to support and services for families and make a tangible impact on their quality of life whilst they remain in need. This will deliver positive benefits for education and health outcomes, including school attendance. Through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, we are introducing a single unique identifier for children nationally to help improve information sharing and safeguarding, which means practitioners and services working with families and children must receive and share relevant information about children and families they support, including to assess safeguarding risks effectively. We will introduce a new duty on councils to notify schools, health visitors and GPs that a child is in temporary accommodation.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential risks to rural landscapes posed by removing the Gardens Trust as a statutory consultee in the English planning system.
On 17 November 2025, my Department published a consultation on reforms to the statutory consultee system. That consultation closed on 13 January 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here. No decision will be made on the Garden Trust’s role until responses to the consultation have been fully analysed and considered.
Communities and Local Government, when his Department plans to consult on proposals to require (a) swift and (b) bat bricks to be incorporated into new buildings.
The government recognises that swift bricks are a vital means of addressing the long-term decline of the breeding swift population. While swift brick coverage is increasing, we made clear during the passage of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill that we were committed to doing more to drive up swift brick installation. The government is currently consulting on changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), including a new policy that would require all developments to include swift bricks into their construction unless compelling technical reasons would prevent their use or make them ineffective. This is a significant strengthening of expectations already in place and we expect the end result to be at least one swift brick in every new brick built house unless there are legitimate reasons why installation would not be appropriate. The consultation on changes to the NPPF is available on gov.uk here and will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026.
Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support Somerset Council with the provision of the Disabled Facilities Grant in Yeovil constituency.
The government recognises the importance of home adaptations, to enable older and disabled people to live as independently as possible in a safe and suitable environment. Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide adaptations for people who satisfy a needs assessment, eligibility criteria and a means test, and have powers to agree a more generous local policy. To support this duty, government have boosted funding for the Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) by £86 million per year to £711 million for both 2024-25 and 2025-26. Government provides guidance to local authorities on the effective delivery of the grant, which can be found on gov.uk here. This guidance also outlines how councils can develop a local housing assistance policy to improve efficiency and better address the needs of their local communities.Government also funds a national body for DFGs and home improvement agencies, currently Foundations, to provide support and advice to local authorities to help them deliver the DFG as efficiently as possible.
Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support homeless people in Yeovil constituency.
The Government is committed to getting back on track to ending all forms of homelessness across the country. Our cross-Government homelessness strategy will set out the actions needed across central and local government and the homelessness sector to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping. The Government is supporting people at risk of and experiencing homelessness and rough sleeping across the country with more than £1 billion funding, a £316 million increase on last year. This includes £84 million new funding announced on 10 October 2025. Councils are able to use this funding to meet the needs of people in their area, and local authority allocations are published on gov.uk.
Communities and Local Government, what steps she taking to improve the standard of new build houses in Yeovil constituency.
The Government recognises the critical importance of ensuring developers comply with building regulations, especially those relating to safety and accessibility. Under the Building Regulations 2010 (as amended), it is the legal responsibility of those undertaking building work, including the construction of new homes, to ensure all relevant requirements are met. Developers must demonstrate compliance with the building regulations to a Registered Building Inspector, who is responsible for verifying that the work meets the necessary standards. The Government continues to keep the regulatory framework under review to ensure it remains robust, proportionate, and fit for purpose. Recent reforms to the building control system, including the introduction of a new regulatory regime under the Building Safety Act, are designed to strengthen oversight and improve accountability across the sector.
Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of regulations for ensuring developers adhere to basic building regulations.
The Government recognises the critical importance of ensuring developers comply with building regulations, especially those relating to safety and accessibility. Under the Building Regulations 2010 (as amended), it is the legal responsibility of those undertaking building work, including the construction of new homes, to ensure all relevant requirements are met. Developers must demonstrate compliance with the building regulations to a Registered Building Inspector, who is responsible for verifying that the work meets the necessary standards. The Government continues to keep the regulatory framework under review to ensure it remains robust, proportionate, and fit for purpose. Recent reforms to the building control system, including the introduction of a new regulatory regime under the Building Safety Act, are designed to strengthen oversight and improve accountability across the sector.
Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to future-proof housing for disabled people in Yeovil constituency.
Housing is one of this Government’s top priorities. Everyone deserves to live in a decent home that is suitable for them and meets their needs. The revised National Planning Policy Framework, published on 12 December 2024, requires local planning authorities to assess the size, type and tenure of housing needed for different groups in the community, including those of older and disabled people, and to reflect this in planning policies. Where an identified need exists, plans are expected to help bring forward an adequate supply of accessible housing. The Government will shortly set out its policies on accessible new build housing, reinforcing our commitment to ensuring everyone has access to a safe, suitable home.
Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to raise accessibility standards for new homes in Yeovil constituency.
Housing is one of this Government’s top priorities. Everyone deserves to live in a decent home that is suitable for them and meets their needs. The revised National Planning Policy Framework, published on 12 December 2024, requires local planning authorities to assess the size, type and tenure of housing needed for different groups in the community, including those of older and disabled people, and to reflect this in planning policies. Where an identified need exists, plans are expected to help bring forward an adequate supply of accessible housing. The Government will shortly set out its policies on accessible new build housing, reinforcing our commitment to ensuring everyone has access to a safe, suitable home.