The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answers on 22nd February 2021:
The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked Her Majesty’s Government whether the recent announcement to provide temporary basic accommodation to support prison leavers at risk of homelessness in five National Probation Service regions will include (1) women-only accommodation, and (2) provisions for specific support for vulnerable women with complex needs.
Lord Wolfson of Tredegar (Con, MoJ): To reduce reoffending and provide health and wellbeing support, we are launching a new accommodation service, providing up to 12 weeks of basic temporary accommodation for prison leavers who would otherwise be homeless. This will complement the service being delivered through the new unified probation model.
Women-only accommodation provision will be made available, as required. More generally, the service will take account of the needs of women, including those with complex needs.
This Government is clear that getting prison leavers into stable accommodation provides the platform they need to find work and access treatment for addictions and mental health problems, which reduce the risk of reoffending. Tackling all three issues together in this way – accommodation, work and treatment – could prevent thousands of people becoming victims each year and save some of the £18 billion annual cost of repeat crimes.
The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have (1) to record, and (2) to report, on the (a) housing outcomes, and (b) homelessness figures, of female prison leavers as part of the resettlement and reoffending metrics for measuring the success of the Concordat on women in or at risk of contact with the Criminal Justice System.
Lord Wolfson of Tredegar: Relevant data on housing outcomes and homelessness figures for female prison leavers are published annually at the below link, and can be found attached.
We will refer to these published figures when measuring and reporting on the success of the Concordat on women in or at risk of contact with the Criminal Justice System. The Concordat contains a commitment to describe progress in a “One Year On” report.
The Church of England in Parliament 
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