General imagery of housing across Greater Manchester

A Housing First Greater Manchester


Housing First is part of the GMCA’s pioneering approach to delivering public services and tackling the problems that are hampering wellbeing and economic growth. It is based on the philosophy that good health, good education, and good jobs cannot come without a good, permanent home.

Our Vision

The security of a good home is a fundamental foundation for us all to achieve our ambitions in life – our safe space for growing up, getting on and growing old.

The housing crisis means that too many of us don’t have that solid base, and our bold aspirations for the future won’t happen unless we fix that. So in Greater Manchester, we are putting Housing First.

Our ambition is for everyone in Greater Manchester to live in a home they can afford that is safe, secure, accessible healthy and environmentally sustainable – a healthy home for all by 2038.

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Here in Greater Manchester we have a plan to fix the foundations of life so we can all fulfil our potential.

Our plan starts by putting Housing First, so we can end the housing crisis.

By 2038 we want everyone in Greater Manchester to have a healthy home, they can call their own.

A home that's affordable and energy efficient, where they feel safe and can get around.

Investing in homes is an investment in our people because poor and insecure housing damages physical and mental health.

It's also makes it harder for people to thrive at work, at school or at college.

So partners from the public, private and voluntary sector and formed a new Housing First unit.

Together will work on three priorities across our city region increasing the supply of housing, driving up standards for renters and giving everyone the support they need to access and retain a healthy home.

We'll deliver new housing that is affordable to rent and affordable to run.

By building more social homes than we are losing, and will make sure it's the kind of housing people need.

The right types and sizes of home in the right places we’ll support good landlords to improve their properties, and will crack down on rogue landlords, by offering free property checks for renters and taking stronger enforcement against those who don't want to improve their homes and our communities.

Finally, we'll offer everyday support in every neighbourhood so people can live well and get the help they need to access and keep a healthy home.

Greater Manchester's housing first approach will help grow our economy.

It will create new high quality jobs in building, repairing and retrofitting homes.

Housing First will also help people to get on in life because healthy, affordable homes improve wellbeing and reduce financial stress.

Creating a platform for success.

Our plan will reduce the number of people who are homeless or living in temporary accommodation, and it will create stronger communities with people feeling a pride in the places where they live.

We can't fix the housing market overnight.

This is a long term plan for homes across Greater Manchester, where we will turn the tide on the housing crisis.

By working together, we can deliver our vision and make sure everyone in our city region has a healthy home by 2038.

The Housing First Unit

The Housing First Unit has been established to lead GM’s work to deliver our vision for a healthy home for all by 2038. It will lead and coordinate action, promote the Housing First principles, provide capacity and advocate for the radical reforms needed to solve the housing crisis. It will tackle the roots of the housing crisis by:

  • Increasing housing supply to deliver the homes our residents need.
  • Driving up housing standards to improve the quality and suitability of our existing homes and letting practices.
  • Supporting Greater Manchester residents to live well by putting housing at the heart of what we do.

Contact the Housing First Unit

Supporting access to retaining a healthy home

Increasing housing supply

Driving up standards

Our partnerships

Local Remediation Acceleration Plan

As part of the Government's plans to accelerate the remediation of residential buildings with unsafe cladding, Greater Manchester (GM) is finalising its Local Remediation Acceleration Plan. Learn more about the Plan and read a Statement on the Plan from Kate Green (Deputy Mayor - Safer and Stronger Communities), and Paul Denett (Deputy Mayor - Housing First)