Chairing the first meeting of a group of public and private sector leaders, the Minister said he was "passionate" about ensuring some of the region's most disadvantaged adults are able to find a job and a home.
Care-leavers, ex-offenders, people with learning difficulties and people with mental health problems have all been identified by the Government's Social Exclusion Task Force as being among the adults most at risk of being homeless or unemployed, and at risk of falling into a life of disadvantage.
Minister for the East Midlands Phil Hope said:
"This is an area I feel passionately about - by helping society's most vulnerable adults we not only improve their chances but also make life better for everyone in the East Midlands.
"As a region the East Midlands is reasonably good at helping people who fall into the four groups identified, but we have to ask ourselves if merely being 'average' is good enough. There is much good work going on in the cities and counties of the region, but I believe we can only make a real difference if we all work together.
"I want to know why in some parts of the region twice as many ex-offenders have a job than in others. Why the number of care leavers in employment, education or training varies enormously from city to city.
"If we put our collective minds to it we can make the East Midlands a shining example of how to help some of our most vulnerable people."
The group - which comprises directors of Government agencies, leaders of public sector organisations and representatives from private business - will focus on helping organisations within the region to meet the specific improvements the Government wants to see in the support available to these vulnerable groups.
The Social Exclusion Task Force, working in the Cabinet Office, have helped to develop the Government's central target - or Public Service Agreement (PSA) - on supporting socially-excluded adults. It is one of only 30 PSAs agreed across the whole of Government and will help ensure that the region's most at-risk individuals are given the opportunity to get back onto the path to success.
