The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is a ministerial department of the

Government of the United Kingdom His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

. It is responsible for

housing Housing refers to a property containing one or more Shelter (building), shelter as a living space. Housing spaces are inhabited either by individuals or a collective group of people. Housing is also referred to as a human need and right to ...

communities A community is a Level of analysis, social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place (geography), place, set of Norm (social), norms, culture, religion, values, Convention (norm), customs, or Ide ...

, and

local government in England Local government in England broadly consists of three layers: civil parishes, local authorities, and regional authorities. Every part of England is governed by at least one local authority, but parish councils and regional authorities do not ex ...

. It was established in May 2006 and is the successor to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, established in 2001. The department shares its headquarters building, at

2 Marsham Street 2 Marsham Street is an office building on Marsham Street in the City of Westminster, London, and headquarters of the Home Office and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (and its predecessor bodies), departments of the Brit ...

in London, with the

Home Office The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...

. There are corresponding departments in the

Scottish Government The Scottish Government (, ) is the executive arm of the devolved government of Scotland. It was formed in 1999 as the Scottish Executive following the 1997 referendum on Scottish devolution, and is headquartered at St Andrew's House in ...

, the

Welsh Government The Welsh Government ( ) is the Executive (government), executive arm of the Welsh devolution, devolved government of Wales. The government consists of Cabinet secretary, cabinet secretaries and Minister of State, ministers. It is led by the F ...

, and the

Northern Ireland Executive The Northern Ireland Executive (Irish language, Irish: ''Feidhmeannas Thuaisceart Éireann'', Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster Scots: ''Norlin Airlan Executive'') is the devolution, devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative branc ...

, responsible for communities and local government in their respective jurisdictions.

Ministers

MHCLG's ministers are as follows, with cabinet ministers in bold: The

Permanent Secretary A permanent secretary is the most senior Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil servant of a department or Ministry (government department), ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day activities. Permanent secretaries are ...

is Sarah Healey who took up her post in February 2023.

History

MHCLG was formed in July 2001 as part of the

Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for supporting the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister and Cabinet ...

with the title Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM), headed by the then

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...

John Prescott John Leslie Prescott, Baron Prescott (31 May 1938 – 20 November 2024) was a British politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and as First Secretary of State from 2001 to 2007. A member of the ...

. In May 2002 the ODPM became a separate department after absorbing the local government and regions portfolios from the defunct Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions. The ODPM was criticised in some quarters for adding little value and the Environmental Audit Committee had reported negatively on the department in the past. During the 5 May 2006 reshuffle of Tony Blair's government, it was renamed and

Ruth Kelly Ruth Maria Kelly (born 9 May 1968) is the chair of Water UK, the trade association representing all of the water and wastewater companies of the United Kingdom. She was previously a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who serve ...

succeeded

David Miliband David Wright Miliband (born 15 July 1965) is the president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the International Rescue Committee and a former British Labour Party politician. He was the Foreign Secretary from 2007 to 2010 and the Member o ...

(cabinet-level Minister of State for Communities and Local Government within the ODPM) to become the first

Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government The secretary of state for housing, communities and local government is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom and is the Cabinet minister responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction of the Ministry of Ho ...

at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG). In January 2018, as part of Theresa May's Cabinet reshuffle, the department was renamed the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). In September 2021,

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...

renamed the department yet again, calling it the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), bringing more powers outside of just England to manage funds across the United Kingdom. On 20 February 2021, it was announced as part of the government's levelling up policy, that MHCLG would be the first government department to have a headquarters based outside of London. Five hundred posts, including those of senior civil servants, will be moving to

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ...

by 2025. On 23 February 2021, the then Secretary of State, Robert Jenrick, announced he was hopeful that staff would be working in

by the summer of 2021. He also announced that they were considering building a new office development in or around the city centre to house the new headquarters. The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, suggested it should be within walking distance of local newspaper '' Express & Star'', where he previously did work experience. With the intention to relocate some 500 members of staff to Wolverhampton, Robert Jenrick officially opened its new Wolverhampton offices at the i9 office development on 10 September 2021. At the opening of the new office development the Secretary of State was joined by the leader of

City of Wolverhampton Council City of Wolverhampton Council is the Local government in England, local authority for the City status in the United Kingdom, city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Wolverhampton has had an elected local aut ...

Ian Brookfield and the West Midlands Mayor, Andy Street. On 6 July 2022, most of the ministers responsible for the department resigned after the Chris Pincher scandal. The secretary of state,

Michael Gove Michael Andrew Gove, Baron Gove (; born Graeme Andrew Logan, 26 August 1967) is a British politician and journalist who served in various Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabinet positions under David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Rish ...

, also left the department on the same day, after being sacked for disloyalty by the prime minister,

was reappointed as the secretary of state by the prime minister

Rishi Sunak Rishi Sunak (born 12 May 1980) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2022 to 2024. Following his defeat to Keir Starmer's La ...

on 25 October 2022. Following the Labour Party's victory at the 2024 General Election, Angela Rayner was appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on 5 July 2024. The department reverted to its former name, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government on 8 July 2024. The Office for Local Government ("Oflog"), established in 2023, was an office within the department responsible for providing "authoritative and accessible data and analysis about the performance of local government, and support ngits improvement".

Levelling Up

A Levelling Up Taskforce was formed in September 2021 headed by former Bank of England Chief Economist Andy Haldane. The Levelling Up policy was not initially defined in detail, but would include: *Investing in towns, cities, and rural and coastal areas *Giving those areas more control of how investment is made *Levelling up skills using apprenticeships and a £3 billion National Skills Fund *Helping the farming and fishing industries *Creating up to 10 freeports to help deprived communities

Secretaries of State

11 May 2005 – 5 May 2006 *

5 May 2006 – 27 June 2007 * Hazel Blears 27 June 2007 – 5 June 2009 * John Denham 5 June 2009 – 11 May 2010 *

Eric Pickles Eric Jack Pickles, Baron Pickles, (born 20 April 1952) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentwood and Ongar from 1992 United ...

12 May 2010 – 11 May 2015 *

Greg Clark Gregory David Clark (born 28 August 1967) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from 2016 to 2019. He also was Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government from 2015 t ...

11 May 2015 – 14 July 2016 *

Sajid Javid Sir Sajid Javid (; born 5 December 1969) is a British former politician who served as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care from June 2021 to July 2022, having previously served as Home Secretary from 2018 to 2019 and Chancellor of the ...

13 July 2016 – 30 April 2018 * James Brokenshire 30 April 2018 – 24 July 2019 * Robert Jenrick 24 July 2019 – 15 September 2021 *

15 September 2021 – 6 July 2022 *

7 July 2022 – 6 September 2022 * Simon Clarke 6 September 2022 – 25 October 2022 *

25 October 2022 – 5 July 2024 *

Angela Rayner Angela Rayner (' Bowen; born 28 March 1980) is a British politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government since 2024 United Kingdom general election, Jul ...

5 July 2024 – ''present''

Responsibilities

The department is responsible for

UK Government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

policy in the following areas, mainly in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

: * Building regulations *

Community cohesion Community cohesion is a conceptual framework for social policy in the United Kingdom which attempts to measure the social relationships within a community. It relies on criteria such as: the presence of a shared vision, inclusion of those with ...

* Community resilience (i.e. flood, natural disaster or severe weather preparedness and recovery) * English devolution *

Housing Housing refers to a property containing one or more Shelter (building), shelter as a living space. Housing spaces are inhabited either by individuals or a collective group of people. Housing is also referred to as a human need and right to ...

Local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

Planning Planning is the process of thinking regarding the activities required to achieve a desired goal. Planning is based on foresight, the fundamental capacity for mental time travel. Some researchers regard the evolution of forethought - the cap ...

* Race equality *

Urban regeneration Urban renewal (sometimes called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address real or perceived urban decay. Urban renewal involves the clearing ...

(including The Thames Gateway)

Digitising planning

MHCLG teams have been actively supporting digitisation of town planning processes as part of the Levelling Up Mission. Under the "Proptech innovation fund", MHCLG has been funding four rounds of digitisation initiatives within various local councils in England.

Bodies sponsored by MHCLG

Executive agencies

* Planning Inspectorate * Queen Elizabeth II Centre The department also was previously responsible for two other agencies. On 18 July 2011

Ordnance Survey The Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see Artillery, ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of ...

was transferred to the

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) was a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It was created by the Gordon Brown premiership on 5 June 2009 by the merger of the Department for Innovation, Uni ...

and on 28 February 2013 the

Fire Service College The Fire Service College is responsible for providing leadership, management and advanced operational training courses for senior firefighter, fire officers from the United Kingdom and foreign fire authorities. It is located at Moreton-in-Marsh i ...

was sold to

Capita Capita plc is an international business process outsourcing and professional services company headquartered in London. It is the largest business process outsourcing and professional services company in the United Kingdom, with an overall ma ...

Non-departmental public bodies

In January 2007, Ruth Kelly announced proposals to bring together the delivery functions of the Housing Corporation,

English Partnerships English Partnerships (EP) was the national urban renewal, regeneration agency for England, performing a similar role on a national level to that fulfilled by regional development agency, regional development agencies on a regions of England, region ...

and parts of the then Department for Housing, Communities and Local Government to form a new unified housing and regeneration agency, the Homes and Communities Agency. In 2008 the department along with the

Local Government Association The Local Government Association (LGA) is the national membership body for local government in England, local authorities in England and Wales. Its core membership is made up of 317 English councils and the 22 Welsh councils through the ...

produced the National Improvement and Efficiency Strategy which led to the creation of nine Regional Improvement and Efficiency Partnerships (RIEPs) with devolved funding of £185m to drive sector-led improvement for councils.

Devolution

Its main counterparts in the devolved nations of the UK are as follows. Scotland * Communities Directorates * Learning and Justice Directorates Northern Ireland * Executive Office (civil resilience, community cohesion, race relations) * Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (local government, planning) * Department of Finance (building regulations) * Department of Health (fire services) *

Department for Communities The Department for Communities (DfC, Irish Language, Irish: ''An Roinn Pobal''; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster Scots: ''Depairtment fur Commonities'') is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The m ...

(housing, urban regeneration) Wales * Welsh Government Department for Local Government and Public Services

References

External links

*
Local Government ChannelCommunities UK

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

channel {{UK planning Housing, Communities and Local Government 2006 establishments in the United Kingdom 2006 establishments in England

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Ministries established in 2006 Governance of England