'Worst place I've lived': Vulnerable left in unsafe homes

Councils decide whether someone with care needs, such as a mental or physical health problem, qualifies for supported housing and who can provide it, but otherwise there is almost no regulation.

The council pays the rent for people who are vulnerable due to factors such as disabilities or experience of homelessness, abuse and addiction.

The new law gives the department for housing and local councils powers to set standards for supported housing providers for the first time, but no exact start date has been set for a consultation into how the law will work.

A housing spokesperson said it had "made a clear commitment...to consulting on further measures early next year".

Meanwhile, the supported housing advisory panel, which is meant to be made up of people from the sector who can provide information to the government, has also not been set up.

The law required it to have been set up in June. The government said it is "committed to establishing" the panel.

Even if the law is enforced, the National Housing Federation (NHF) said it would not solve "extreme financial challenges caused by severe cuts to funding, combined with rocketing inflation and increasing operating costs".

It calculates over a third of supported housing providers shut down schemes last year and 60% intend on closing sites in future.

At the same time supported housing supply is falling, many charities say demand has soared due to NHS cuts and rising homelessness.

Sophie Boobis, head of policy and research at Homeless Link, said the consultation was needed so that good providers could set a standard for what good looks like and remove the uncertainty created by the lack of regulation.

"This is a sector at risk...It feels like a pressure cooker at the moment."