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Inside Andy Burnham's mission to continue Manchester's homelessness success across the whole of England

As Andy Burnham prepares to apply the lessons learned from his Manchester 'A Bed Every Night' scheme, local groups say it has become a victim of its own success

[Homeless men in 'Tent City,' near Little Queen Street, in Leeds West Yorkshire]

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Andy Burnham is hoping to extend his success in Manchester through the rest of the country(Image: Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)

Andy Burnham made ending rough sleeping his first pledge on day one of walking into 10 Downing Street.

He had a similar policy during his decade as Mayor of Greater Manchester - but after initial success the numbers started to rise again. Local groups say Burnhams A Bed Every Night' scheme was a victim of its own success - with people heading to the city in the hope of getting help and accommodation.

But, despite the difficulties the government will face, they hope his plans to tackle the issue nationally are a success. Walking through Manchester today the number of tents on the pavements and down alleyways has reduced massively.

[Tents just off Bridge Street Manchester]

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Burnham's 'A Bed Every Night' scheme was a flagship of his time as Greater Manchester Mayor(Image: Steve Allen)

Piccadilly Gardens - once a blight on the city centre due to the number of homeless people sleeping in the doorways - has now been cleaned up - though that may be due to the ongoing renovation works. But local groups say homelessness and rough sleeping is still a big problem in the city.

Jimmy Dunn, who helps run Lifeshare, a voluntary organisation which supports the homeless, said Andy Burnham s Bed Every Night policy in Manchester became a victim of its own success.

He said: I thought his statement on day one as Prime Minister was bold. When he started the scheme in Manchester it started to work. He did a lot of good things as mayor. But now obviously the numbers are up again and part of that is down to the success of the A Bed scheme."

"People came to Manchester because they heard about it. Weve had people from Lancashire, Stoke, Birmingham. They head here in the hope of getting accommodation, but its not that easy.

[Jimmy Dunn from Lifeshare in Manchester, with Andy Burnham]

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Jimmy Dunn said the scheme has become a bictim of its own success(Image: Steve Allen)

Jimmy said Burnham had visited Lifeshares breakfast club during his time as Manchester mayor, adding: This new money will be dispersed across the country, but I dont think you can eradicate it (homelessness), its not as simple as that. A lot of people dont want accommodation, a lot of people arent capable of looking after themselves.

Thats why they need support, to help get them ready. If he eradicates 40% or 60% then he will have helped a lot of people.

Jimmy said the organisation feeds up to 350 people every weekend at their breakfast clubs and hands over dozens of food packages each week. He said there needed to be a coordinated response from a large number of organisations to properly get people off the streets.

We have to deal with drugs, drink, violence. We had one young lad who had his sleeping bag set on fire on Christmas Eve, he was in hospital for months. We have all the social problems rolled into one."

[LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 20: Leader of the Labour Party Andy Burnham makes a social media post after a visit to The Passage Homeless Charity on July 20, 2026 in the Victoria area of London, England. Later today the Member of Parliament for Makerfield will become the UK's 59th Prime Minister, succeeding Sir Keir Starmer, who resigned as leader of the Labour Party and Prime Minister in June. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)]

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Andy Burnham plans to extend his Manchester success to the whole of England(Image: Christopher Furlong, Getty Images)

"You have to get people help where it is needed, social workers, probation officers, get them registered with doctors. There are a lot of good charities in Manchester. We try to steer them in the right direction, then once they get the right help then they can start making the right decisions for themselves.

Justin, who is homeless and volunteers at the organisation, said he hoped Burnhams plan would work across the country - but warned it was ambitious.

Ive been homeless on and off for seven years. The system isnt great. Ive got temporary accommodation now, my own room in a shared facility. I think it will cost a lot more than 100 million extra to make it a success. More and more people are struggling, the cost of living is still going up."

[1_Prime-Minister-Andy-Burnham-Visits-A-Homeless-Charity-In-Central-London.jpg]

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Leader of the Labour Party Andy Burnham talks to homeless person Hubar (Image: Getty Images)

More people will become homeless, I think that will add to the pressures. What hes saying sounds great, but there are a lot of people out there not registered as homeless."

"What happens if they start coming out of the woodwork as soon as this comes into play. If you give someone a bed you become responsible for the needs of that person. I think people are going to either love or hate what Andy Burnham does. But at least hes having a go. A lot of politicians bluster but at least hes vaping a crack at it.

Sat outside a doorway on Market Street in the centre of town, Michael said he had been homeless for about two months.

[Homeless man Michael]

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Homeless man Michael has been on the streets for a few months(Image: Steve Allen)

Asked about the PMs plans he said: Ill believe it when I see it. Weve heard it all before from politicians. It's a balancing act with the Government, they only have a certain amount of money. Ive been finding it hard this last couple of months.

"I dont know about being homeless. I made some bad decisions. I find it hard asking for help. I feel I should find the answers.

He said he was sofa surfing and reliant on friends for somewhere to stay: Thats not going to last forever, I lost my last tenancy and now Im on a blacklist. Im not going to be considered for housing for a while.

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