Dr Kayleigh Sharp is a health services researcher at RAND Europe within the health and care research group. Kayleigh holds a PhD in Behavioural Medicine from Loughborough University where she explored the feasibility and acceptability of a physical activity intervention during pregnancy. Since completing her PhD, Kayleigh has conducted research at RAND Europe that has included evaluations on bowel cancer screening within the NHS, care coordination for people living with a rare disease, reforms in death certification, and the recently completed evaluation of the housing support grant in the drug strategy’s Treatment and Recovery portfolio in England.

Abstract

Implementation and early impacts of the housing support grant for people who use alcohol and/or other drugs in England

Aims: In 2022, through the Housing Support Grant, the former UK Government provided up to £53m across three years to help local authorities address the housing needs of people who use alcohol and/or other drugs. This research focused on whether the Housing Support Grant was implemented as intended, the barriers and facilitators encountered in its implementation, and the influence of wider and local context on delivery.

Methods: We conducted a mixed-methods study comprising of: (1) a review of Housing Support Grant plans from local authorities across all 28 sites; (2) interviews with Housing Support Grant leads in eight local authorities; (3) three case study sites, involving interviews (n=40) and focus groups (n=14) with people who received Housing Support Grant interventions and staff; and (4) analysis of the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System and Housing Support Grant monitoring datasets submitted by local authorities.

Results: Many staff and people who received the Housing Support Grant funding praised the adaptability of the Housing Support Grant and its flexibility to meet local and individual needs. The Housing Support Grant was described as particularly beneficial for vulnerable people. Partnership working between treatment and recovery services and other sectors (e.g. housing providers) varied. The Housing Support Grant required the recruitment of skilled staff who could effectively address housing issues.

Conclusions: Our findings show early positive trends among Housing Support Grant recipients and indicate that the Housing Support Grant appears to have worked as intended by improving access to housing support services, reducing housing-related barriers and positively impacting health and wellbeing outcomes. Some tensions were described regarding the implementation of these newly recruited roles, particularly relating to perceived variation in caseloads compared to similar roles within treatment and recovery services.