Andy Burnham has promised to work to "get everyone in for Christmas" as part of his ongoing pledge to eradicate rough sleeping.

The Prime Minister is seeking to recreate measures introduced during the coronavirus pandemic, when the Everyone In scheme brought thousands of street sleepers into shelter across England.

According to the latest annual national statistics released by the Government in February, an estimated 4,793 people were sleeping rough on a single night in autumn 2025 in England.

The total marked an all-time record high, alongside a fourth consecutive annual rise.

During that period, 43% of the overall rough sleeping population was concentrated in London and the South East.

Newer data for London published last month showed a 10% year-on-year drop in the number of rough sleepers in the capital, prompting a charity boss to insist ending rough sleeping in London and beyond is “within reach”.

Some 3,959 people slept rough in the capital between April and June this year, research from the Combined Homelessness and Information Network (Chain) showed, down from 4,392 in the same period in 2025.

This week, the Government has committed to “offer everyone a route off the streets this Christmas”, although there is no defined duration as to how long local authorities might be expected to take people in for, and it is understood to be accepted that not every rough sleeper might take up the offer.

Mr Burnham has also said he will host what is being described as a first-of-its-kind national summit this autumn to “bring together leaders from across society – from business, finance, charities, health, faith communities and more – to ask what role each of them can play in ending rough sleeping”.

The Prime Minister, who pledged as his “first instruction” on day one in No 10 “to end rough sleeping in our country”, suggested people living on the streets has begun to become accepted over the years.

He said: “No-one should have to bed down in a doorway or outside a station. But we’ve seen it for so long that it feels like Westminster has started to accept it.

“I won’t accept it. That’s why my first instruction as Prime Minister was to end rough sleeping. And it’s why today we’re getting started with a national drive to get everyone in for Christmas.

“We did it in the pandemic, we can do it again. But it needs all of us.

Government will put the money in, but I’m asking leaders in communities and sectors across society to play their part locally too.

“Let’s get people out the cold. And let’s bring back hope.”

Mr Burnham has announced an additional £102 million, from uncommitted budgets within the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), to go towards immediate routes for people off the street this winter, including an £8.4 million boost to the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund, in recognition of the work of charities, faith groups and community organisations in this area.

The £102 million will go alongside the £340 million announced last month in funding for new support to get long-term rough sleepers into settled accommodation.

MHCLG said areas facing the greatest pressures with regard to homelessness will get the largest share of support and that mayors will be expected to work alongside councils to “play a leading role in driving local action to end rough sleeping” including deciding what help is needed and where.

Guidance to help with the drive will “make clear the need to ensure adequate and accessible provision” for female rough sleepers who the department said are often underrepresented in official statistics and can be at greater risk of violence, abuse and exploitation.

Local areas will be encouraged to “consider single-sex accommodation with specialist, intensive and trauma-informed support, for victims of domestic abuse and sexual violence”, the department said.

Housing Secretary Angela Rayner said: “When the Prime Minister pledged to end rough sleeping, we said we’d move urgently from words to action. Today we’re delivering on that promise.

“This funding will help thousands of people leave the streets behind, move into secure homes and get the support they need to rebuild their lives.

“Working alongside councils, mayors and charities, we’re backing local areas to tackle rough sleeping at its roots, giving people the security, dignity and opportunity they deserve, and restoring hope to those who have been let down for far too long.”

Ms Rayner has previously declined to put a target deadline on the Government’s pledge to end rough sleeping, when asked about Mr Burnham’s commitment that his Government would work to “finally end long-term rough sleeping across the UK at the earliest opportunity”.

Homelessness charities welcomed the announcement as a “strong start” that puts the country on a path to end rough sleeping, while opposition critics said it lacked detail and substance.

Shelter chief executive Sarah Elliott said: “The Prime Minister’s pledge to get everyone sleeping rough off the streets by Christmas is a game-changing move and exactly the kind of bold leadership needed to end the housing emergency.”

She added: “Tackling the most visible form of homelessness is a strong start, but the almost 178,000 children hidden away in grim temporary accommodation also need somewhere to call home.

“The Prime Minister must apply the same unwavering ambition to delivering the council housing revolution he promised.”

Lord John Bird, the crossbench peer and co-founder of the Big Issue, said: “Covid proved that when we decide rough sleeping is unacceptable, we can act and get people in off the streets. This Christmas commitment is a welcome return to that spirit.

“But it’s important that people are not just brought in from the cold for a few weeks, only to be sent back out again.

“To that end, I’m encouraged to see the Prime Minister is allocating millions in tried-and-tested localised solutions that offer wraparound support for long-term rough sleepers.”

Crisis chief executive Matt Downie said: “Today’s announcement represents a clear statement that in the 21st century, we will not tolerate a situation where people are having to bed down on our streets.

“It puts us on the path to an historic milestone: the end of rough sleeping in England.”

He added: “Where access to a home isn’t possible straight away, providing good quality accommodation with a clear plan to support people into settled housing is a vital first step.”

Shadow housing secretary Sir James Cleverly said: “Andy Burnham promised to end rough sleeping in Manchester, and failed because he didn’t do the hard work necessary.

“Now he is pledging to end it nationally without any plan for delivery. And as with many of his other commitments, there is very little detail on how this one will be paid for.”

Sir James added: “Labour must come clean on what other programmes they are cutting to pay for this project.

“Otherwise, struggling families will fear that yet more Labour tax rises are on the horizon.”

Deputy Reform UK leader Richard Tice dismissed the pledge as “yet another vague announcement with no substances which uses our most vulnerable for political point-scoring”.

“We’ll believe it when we see it. Andy Burnham’s record on homelessness has left a lot to be desired,” he said.

“As mayor of Greater Manchester, he promised to eradicate rough sleeping. In actual fact, homelessness in the city-region increased every year since 2021.”