Exeter is set to receive almost £2 million in government funding to help tackle rough sleeping, writes local democracy reporter Guy Henderson. The money comes as part of Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s national drive to get everyone off the streets for Christmas.
The funding is part of a £442 million package, with areas of greatest need receiving the largest share. Exeter will get £1,974,556. The scheme aims to give people facing long-term homelessness a settled home and the support to keep it.
Exeter Labour MP Steve Race said he was delighted at the opportunity for the city to help its homeless people. He said: “When Labour was last in government we reduced rough-sleeping levels to a record low. After 14 years of Tory cuts, we can all see the impact this has had when we walk down the High Street in Exeter.
“I’ve previously joined the outreach teams at both St Petrock’s and Julian House on their early morning walkabouts to see the challenges first-hand, and I know from speaking to people across the city that tackling this issue is a priority for Exeter.
“Anyone working with people sleeping rough will know that it’s not just a roof over their head that they need – it can also require wraparound support for trauma and addiction. Working together, we can deal with these root-causes of rough sleeping and give people the opportunities they need to get back on their feet.”
The most recent government snapshot count recorded 51 people sleeping rough in Exeter on the night of November 12, 2025. That gives the city a rate of 36.8 rough sleepers per 100,000 population, among the highest in England and well above the national average.
Local homelessness charities such as St Petrock’s point out that single-night counts only capture a snapshot. A larger number of people experience hidden homelessness, such as sofa-surfing, sleeping in cars or using temporary accommodation.
Alongside emergency accommodation to end the need for rough sleeping, the programme will offer practical help with housing, health and other needs. There will also be a national summit meeting to bring together leaders from business, finance, charities, health, faith communities and more to ask what role each can play in ending rough sleeping.
The Prime Minister 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.”
Exeter to Receive £2m to Tackle Rough Sleeping