Decision details

Action Homeless has developed a scheme proposal to meet specific homeless needs identified in Leicester City Council’s (LCC’s) Strategic Gap Analysis for the Department of Levelling Up Housing and Communities (DLUHC), Single Homelessness Accommodation Programme’s (SHAP) fund.

Leicester City Council submitted a bid to DLUHC on behalf of Action Homeless in November 2023 for £1,525k. As Action Homeless is not classed as a Registered Provider (RP), DLUHC has confirmed that that the grant must be paid through a local authority acting as an Accountable Body; this report seeks approval to act as accountable body.

To approve: 

a) That the Council will act as the Accountable Body for £665k of Department of Levelling Up Housing and Communities (DLUHC) capital grant funding and £860k of DLUHC revenue grant funding, to enable Action Homeless to deliver its proposed scheme.

b) That £665k is added as an immediate start to the 2024/25 capital programme.

c) That authorisation is delegated to officers to accept and enter a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and adhere to the grant determination letter (when received with the first payment) with DLUHC.

d) Authorisation is delegated to officers to enter a funding contract with Action Homeless, to, but not limited to, mirror the requirements of the MOU.

e) To acknowledge DLUHC’s MOU conditions and the associated risks.

As Action Homeless is not classed as a Registered Provider, DLUHC has confirmed that the grant must be paid through a local authority acting as an Accountable Body. By LCC acting as the Accountable Body this will enable Action Homeless to refurbish 14 en-suite rooms, with shared facilities within 3 clusters. The rooms will be let to tenants who meet specific homeless needs as identified in LCC’s Strategic Gap Analysis and LCC will have 100% referral rights to all 14 rooms.

To act as accountable body, to enable Action Homeless to receive the funds to achieve its proposed project or to decline acting as the accountable body, resulting in the lost opportunity to secure these funds to Leicester and the resulting nomination rights to the proposed newly reconfigured dwellings.