The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has updated its guidance on the annual indexation of planning fees, confirming the revised fees that will apply from 1 April 2026. The fees have been adjusted through the statutory annual indexation process, applying a 3.8% increase based on the Consumer Prices Index for September 2025. The update confirms that all planning application fees will rise accordingly from April 2026 and notes a technical issue preventing increases to certain outline applications covering multiple categories, which the government intends to correct through future legislation. MHCLG has set out the revised fee amounts across all categories of development, with the updated charges taking effect from 1 April 2026.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has updated its guidance on the compulsory purchase process to reflect recent legislative changes to the Certificate of Appropriate Alternative Development process, as introduced by section 189 of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 (LURA 2023).

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has issued an update to its guidance on how local authorities should exercise their homelessness functions in accordance with the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 from 3 April 2018. The 'Homelessness code of guidance for local authorities' has seen updates to its 'Chapter 7: Eligibility for Assistance'. These include amendments to paragraphs 7.17 and 7.18(g), and the addition of a new paragraph 7.35.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has updated its guidance on non-determination applications for higher-risk buildings procedures. The guidance includes a new section outlining how to apply to the Secretary of State for a non-determination application under section 30A of the Building Act 1984.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has published its updated guidance on operating principles for night shelters, effective from 3 January 2025. The revised document reflects evolving best practices in supporting rough sleepers, incorporating lessons learned from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Key updates include a continued emphasis on providing single room accommodation where feasible, whilst acknowledging that communal models may be necessary in certain circumstances. The guidance outlines public health principles for shelter operations, including ventilation, hygiene practices and vaccination support. It also stresses the importance of partnership working with local authorities and health services and provides recommendations for maintaining high-quality shelter provision with a focus on outcomes and strong governance.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has updated its guidance on the Homelessness, Rough Sleeping and Domestic Abuse Grant, expanding the reporting and compliance provisions previously outlined when the guidance was first published in February 2026. The revisions, mainly in Sections 6.2 to 6.9 and Annexes A and B, now require end-of-year spend declarations to be reported against specified expenditure categories covering staffing, accommodation, prevention and relief activity, domestic abuse and other expenditure, with the deadline for the 2026–27 signed declaration extended from 9 April 2027 to 30 April 2027 and confirmation that Section 151 officer or equivalent sign-off is required. The guidance also replaces the previously referenced optional mid-year spend declaration with an optional ‘Mid-year Estimate of Spend’ and forecast outturn. In addition, selected authorities receiving targeted supported housing support services funding must now submit a separate annual report to MHCLG by 30 June 2027 for 2026–27, including detailed spending information, the number and cohorts of individuals supported, and evidence that spending aligns with local needs assessments, supported housing strategies and cross-boundary coordination arrangements. The updated guidance also introduces an explicit compliance provision stating that authorities failing to comply with grant conditions or reporting requirements may face measures including the withholding, reduction or suspension of funding.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has updated the ‘Homelessness code of guidance for local authorities’ to reflect the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations and the Supreme Court judgment on the meaning of sex in the Equality Act 2010. The changes include new definitions of ‘sex’, ‘woman’ and ‘man’ and amendments to guidance on domestic abuse, people with an offending history, modern slavery and trafficking, and victims of violence. The update also corrects paragraph 21.45 in the domestic abuse chapter.

The Independent Monitoring Authority for the Citizens' Rights Agreements (IMA) has reported that the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has amended its homelessness support guidance. The revision follows the SSWP v AT [2023] EWCA Civ 130 Court of Appeal ruling and explicitly extends protection under the Charter of Fundamental Rights to third country national family members of eligible citizens. The updated guidance clarifies assessment criteria for local authorities when determining homelessness support eligibility for EU citizens with pre-settled status and their family members.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has updated its Integrated Settlements collection for Mayoral Combined Authorities, adding the Integrated Settlement funds for 2026–2030 and the accompanying functional responsibilities framework. The policy extends deeper devolution arrangements to five additional Mayoral Strategic Authorities from 2026–27: (1) North East; (2) South Yorkshire; (3) West Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authorities; (4) Liverpool City Region Combined Authority; and (5) the Greater London Authority.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has updated its local government reorganisation programme. In a written ministerial statement to Parliament, the MHCLG detailed the allocation of £7.6m in Proposal Development Contributions, specifying the amounts designated for each of the 21 areas involved and the method of payment. The statement also confirmed that all areas had received feedback on their interim plans.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has added two new recovered planning appeals to its ongoing list. These comprise appeals concerning land at Great Sike Road in Old Malton, Malton (reference 3342002) and a site located to the south-east of Bottesford (reference 3340258). These cases will now be determined by the Secretary of State rather than planning inspectors, following the established procedure whereby inspectors will make recommendations but the final decision rests with the Secretary of State. This continues the Department's practice of recovering appeals that are deemed to raise issues of more than local importance or which require ministerial oversight due to their alignment with national policy considerations.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has updated its possession action process guidance to reflect new county court fees. The guidance includes separate documents for private landlords, private residential tenants and social tenants. The updated guidance follows earlier changes introducing the Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service and clarified Form 6A requirements for Section 21 notices under the Housing Act 1988 (HA 1998).