Andy Burnham Spent £722,685 Supporting Refugees with Housing, Benefits and Integration as Manchester Mayor
The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), led by Mayor Andy Burnham, will allocate more than £700,000 across two contracts to help refugees overcome barriers to housing, welfare benefits and local services.
Tender documents published by the GMCA show a total value of £722,685. The funding forms part of the authority’s “Safe Transitions” programme and primarily targets people who have already been granted asylum in the UK.
Purpose of the Schemes
The spending addresses the standard 42-day “move-on” period that begins once an asylum claim is approved. During this window, individuals must leave Home Office-provided accommodation and secure their own housing, benefits and support. The GMCA states the contracts are designed to prevent homelessness during this transition.
Two main contracts have been tendered:
• Community guidance and support services — valued at nearly £370,000. This provides “new community guidance” to help refugees navigate housing, welfare and local systems.
• Refugee Lodging Scheme — valued at more than £350,000. Refugees are matched with resident landlords who offer practical support including access to housing, benefits, employment, education, English language provision, health services and community networks.
Greater Manchester currently hosts more than 8,500 people in asylum support accommodation, including hotels and other temporary lodgings.
Local Homelessness Context
The region faces significant housing pressures. According to homelessness charity Shelter, more than 18,000 people in Greater Manchester have no permanent address. In the city of Manchester alone, over 9,500 people are homeless, roughly half of them children.
Political Reactions and Burnham’s Position
Allies of Andy Burnham have said that, were he to become Prime Minister, he would transfer responsibility for housing asylum seekers and refugees to local councils, ending the current model of large-scale Home Office contracts with private providers.
Burnham had previously called for migrants to gain immediate access to benefits rather than waiting for permanent residence, but reports indicate he has since abandoned that position.
The plans drew criticism from Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp, who told The Telegraph that Burnham was “channelling hundreds of thousands of pounds to help recent immigrants, including illegal immigrants, to help themselves to taxpayer-funded benefits and housing.” Official tender documents, however, describe the schemes as targeting refugees who have been granted asylum.
In public exchanges following the reports, Burnham defended the approach, stating it helps prevent homelessness and saves public money in the longer term by supporting successful integration.
Summary of Verified Facts
• The spending is real, documented in GMCA tender notices, and totals £722,685.
• It focuses on people with granted asylum status, not new arrivals or those whose claims are pending.
• The explicit aim is to reduce homelessness risk during the statutory 42-day move-on period.
• Greater Manchester has both high numbers of people in asylum accommodation and high local homelessness figures.
• The policy has become a point of political contention between Labour figures in Manchester and Conservative critics nationally.
This article is based on tender documents, contemporaneous reporting from The Telegraph / Yahoo News UK, GB News, and related public statements. All figures and programme details are drawn directly from published sources as of late May 2026.
