Collection

Changing Futures

Documents relating to the Changing Futures programme.

About the programme

The Changing Futures programme aims to improve outcomes for adults experiencing multiple disadvantage – including combinations of homelessness, substance misuse, mental ill health, domestic abuse and contact with the criminal justice system.  

From April 2026, a new 3-year £55.8 million phase of the programme will target 18 of the most deprived areas of the country, bringing together local partnerships across heath, social care, substance misuse, housing, police, criminal justice and voluntary sectors to help people with the most complex problems regain control over their lives with the right support at the right time.

It aims to deliver improvements:  

  • for individuals, helping to stabilise and  improve the life situation of adults who face multiple disadvantage
  • for services, promoting greater integration and collaboration across local services to provide a person-centred, trauma informed  approach and reduce demand on services
  • for the wider system of services and support, promoting strong multi-agency partnerships, governance, and better use of data so that local strategy and commissioning better responds to and prevents multiple disadvantage. The programme will be accompanied by a robust evaluation, building the evidence base to underpin future work to support people facing multiple disadvantage.

This is a cross-government programme led by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government in partnership with Department of Health and Social Care, Department for Work and Pensions, Home Office and Ministry of Justice.  

This new phase of the programme builds on learning from the first phase which worked with 15 local partnerships across England over a 5-year period from July 2021 to March 2026.

By January 2026 over 6,700 people had received help from Changing Futures and the national evaluation showed positive impact across homelessness, rough sleeping, health, crime victimhood and domestic abuse as well as wider impact in improved collaboration across services.

Where we work

Phase two of the Changing Futures programme 2026 to 2029 targets the following areas:

  • Birmingham**
  • Blackburn with Darwen
  • Blackpool
  • Bradford
  • Hartlepool
  • Kingston upon Hull
  • Knowsley
  • Leicester
  • Liverpool
  • Manchester*
  • Middlesbrough
  • Nottingham
  • Oldham*
  • Rochdale*
  • Sandwell**
  • Stoke-on-Trent
  • Sunderland
  • Wolverhampton**

Greater Manchester Combined Authority* and West Midlands Combined Authority** will receive combined funding for the target councils within their geography, in line with local agreement to develop a collaborative approach in the combined authority area.

Under the first phase from July 2021 to March 2026 Changing Futures was funded by central government and the National Lottery Community Fund in the following areas:

  • Bristol
  • Essex
  • Greater Manchester
  • Kingston upon Hull
  • Lancashire
  • Leicester
  • Nottingham
  • Northumbria
  • Plymouth
  • Sheffield
  • South Tees
  • Stoke-on-Trent
  • Surrey
  • Sussex
  • Westminster

Programme principles 

Local areas develop their own delivery models which adhere to the following programme principles: 

  • work in partnership across local services and the voluntary and community sector, building strong cross-sector partnerships at a strategic and operational level
  • coordinate support, and better integrate local services to enable a ‘whole person’ approach
  • create flexibility in how local services respond to the people who use them, taking a system-wide view with shared accountability and ownership leading to better services and a ‘no wrong door’ approach to support
  • involve people with lived experience of multiple disadvantage in the design, delivery and evaluation of services and in governance and decision making
  • take a trauma-informed, relational approach across the local system, services and in the governance of the programme
  • commit to drive lasting system-change, with long term sustainable changes and a commitment to sustain the benefits of the programme beyond the lifetime of the funding

Find out more 

If you’d like to find out more about Changing Futures and speak to the team, please email cfp@communities.gov.uk.  

Funding

Research

Archive: Documents relating to first phase of Changing Futures 2021 to 2026

Archive: Press releases relating to first phase of Changing Futures

Updates to this page

Published 17 July 2021
Last updated 25 March 2026 show all updates
  1. Added Phase 2 of Changing Futures 2026 to 2029: Allocations to Areas.

  2. First published.