The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions reviewed Local Housing Allowance at the 2025 Autumn Budget and announced that rates would be maintained at their current levels for 2026/27. A range of factors, such as rent levels across the country and poverty impacts, were considered against the fiscal context and the level of housing support that Government provides overall.

The causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and often complex. The Department for Work and Pensions continues to work closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to make sure interactions with homelessness are considered.

Renters receiving housing support who face a shortfall in meeting their rent costs can apply for a Crisis and Resilience Fund Housing Payment from local authorities in England.

Through the new Crisis and Resilience Fund, the Government is providing long-term funding for locally delivered crisis support in England until March 2029. This includes funding for Manchester City Council who have responsibility for delivery in Manchester Rusholme.

Manchester City Council also receives funding separately for local welfare assistance from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government through their Local Government Finance Settlement.

The Government has increased funding for homelessness services by £316 million this year to a total of more than £1 billion. This includes an extra £84 million announced on 10 October 2025.

Local authority allocations are published through gov.uk here.

Local authorities are responsible for monitoring and assessing local air quality in their areas.

At a national level, air quality monitoring is undertaken across Greater Manchester at multiple locations, including Salford Eccles, Manchester Picadilly, Tameside A635, Bury Whitefield Roadside, Shaw Crompton Way and Manchester Sharston, measuring either NO₂ and/or PM_2.5.

The Government recognises that the United Kingdom faces significant health inequalities which is why, in the 10-Year Health Plan, we have set out the goal to halve the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions. Through prioritising prevention, expanding community care, and improving access in underserved areas, we will create a fairer Britain where everyone can access quality care, regardless of background, income, or postcode.

One example of how we are tackling health inequalities in Manchester is, as announced in January 2025, Manchester City Council receiving approximately £2.12 million in Family Hubs and Start for Life programme funding as part of a £126 million boost for families. This will support our aim of reducing inequalities in health and education outcomes as well as our commitment to giving every child the best start in life.

In addition to this, the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities’ North West Regional Team provides system leadership for population health and for reducing health inequalities across the North West. This includes working with local authorities and integrated care systems to develop and deliver population health programmes at a local level, supporting regional NHS England priorities, and long-term planning on prevention and health inequalities.

The Government has recognised that, nationally, demand for assessments for autism has grown significantly in recent years, and that people are experiencing severe delays for accessing such assessments. The Government’s 10-Year Health Plan will make the National Health Service fit for the future, including early intervention and support without the need for diagnosis.

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including provision of autism services, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.

On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to help ICBs and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for people referred to an autism assessment service. The guidance also sets out what support should be available before an assessment and following a recent diagnosis of autism. Since publication, NHS England has been supporting systems and services to identify where there are challenges for implementation and how they might overcome these.

The Government is also supporting inclusive environments and earlier intervention for children through the Early Language Support for Every Child and the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools programmes.

The NHS Greater Manchester ICB, shaped by engagement with over 15,000 people, has developed a new model of care to improve the outcomes of children and young people with neurodiverse needs. The model supports:

- local neurodevelopmental hubs to provide a single point of access for help, each with specialist teams to provide tailored support for individuals and families;

- triage and prioritisation, where children who are most vulnerable and in need of support are seen first; and

- standardising core services across Greater Manchester to reduce regional inequalities.

The NHS Greater Manchester ICB has also prioritised alignment with the adoption of the GM Children and Young People and Adult Autism Standards for all commissioned services, with further information available at the following link:

https://autismgm.org.uk/resources/gm-autism-post-diagnosis-standards/

We know that autistic people, including women and girls, can face challenges in accessing mental health services.

While it is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including the provision of mental health support for autistic people in Manchester Rusholme, we are taking action to increase awareness and understanding of autism within health and adult social care services. Under the Health and Care Act 2022, providers registered with the Care Quality Commission are required to ensure their staff receive specific training on learning disability and autism appropriate to their role.

To support this, we have been rolling out the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism to the health and adult social care workforce. The first part of this training has now been completed by over three million people.

NHS England has also rolled out additional training across mental health services. 5,000 trainers have been trained as part of the National Autism Trainer Programme and this training covers autism presentation in women and girls. These trainers will cascade their training to teams across mental health services.

NHS England also commissioned the Royal College of Psychiatrists to deliver the National Autism Training Programme for Psychiatrists, with over 300 psychiatrists trained in the past three years.

Furthermore, NHS England has published guidance on how to improve the quality, accessibility, and acceptability of care and support for autistic adults to meet their mental health needs, as well as guidance on adaptations of NHS Talking Therapies for autistic people.

The government’s new Industrial Strategy highlights cyber security as a strategically important sector and one with potential for high growth. The annual UK Cyber Security Sectoral Analysis shows the sector is worth £13.2 billion, up 12% on the previous year, having grown significantly each year since the analysis began.

Greater Manchester is recognised in the Industrial Strategy as a key centre of innovation and technology, with our analysis showing 8% of UK cyber companies and 10% of the country’s cyber workforce are based in the North West. Last year the North West attracted £101.5m in private equity cyber security investment, accounting for 49% of the UK total, the most for any region or devolved administration in the UK. The region is home to the Digital Information Security Hub (DiSH) and The University of Manchester is also recognised as an Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Research, highlighting Manchester’s importance in the cyber security industry.

The Home Office is reviewing the Computer Misuse Act, and will update on proposals taken forward in due course.

On 2 July, the government opened a consultation on a reformed Decent Homes Standard (DHS) for the social and private rented sectors. It seeks views on a range of issues including whether landlords should provide suitable floor coverings in all rooms at the start of every tenancy. The consultation can be found on gov.uk here.

The National Youth Strategy will be co-produced in partnership with young people and the youth sector.

We have launched a national survey to ask young people about their issues and priorities.

We have shared an engagement toolkit so MPs can run their own workshops and discussions with young people, or share this toolkit with organisations in their constituencies who work with young people.

We know that too many children and young people, including those with special educational needs and disabilities, are not receiving the mental health care they need, and that waits for mental health services are too long across England, including in Manchester. We are determined to change that.

As part of our mission to build a National Health Service that is fit for the future, we will provide access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England, introduce open access Young Futures hubs in communities, and recruit 8,500 mental health workers to cut wait times and provide faster treatment.