Latest news with #youthhomelessness
BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Youth homelessness in London 'a real crisis'
A record high of 13,231 people were recorded as sleeping rough in the capital in this year, a 10% increase on the previous year, according to recent number of people classed as living on the streets in London has increased by 27% in the last year too, according to the Combined Homelessness and Information Network (Chain).It is said to be the highest ever annual rise, equating to another 3,000 people making the streets their home. Youth homelessness is of particular concern, with 11% of those rough sleeping in the capital aged 25 and under, figures show. London Youth Hub, a pan-London youth emergency accommodation centre, said it had been able to keep most residents who had stayed there off the streets permanently - but it was struggling to keep up with demand. For one 24-year-old resident, who preferred to remain anonymous, his four-month stay at the hub has turned his life around after he had nowhere to go. Now coming to the end of his stay, the BBC caught up with him as he was on his way out to a viewing for a studio flat."Me and my mum were, constantly fighting. We had a broken relationship. So I couldn't live there anymore and I had to get out," he said."I stayed with friends for a period of time but I couldn't do that forever."Before he arrived at the hub, he was also dealing with grief from his recent father's death."I was struggling with the grieving process with my dad and they said that they could help me here with that."I found the hub via the council. I started just staying in my room but soon I made lots of friends."Now it feels good. I'm ready to take on the world and go out there and get to it and do whatever I can to stay afloat with the help I've got here. "My progression coach said I can always get in touch for support and so that's great."The hub, run by De Paul UK charity, provides psychotherapy sessions for the residents, as well as progression advisers to support them and help find long-term accommodation. 'A real crisis' "Our young people are often quite traumatised and have often been through a lot of stuff that they need to try and process so they can successfully move on with their lives," explains Luton Sinfield, the hub's manager."It's the only emergency accommodation for the whole of London dedicated to youth homelessness. "Everybody gets their own room, their own bathroom and then we work with them to help them move on. "The challenge is we haven't got enough spaces for all the people we need to accommodate, and that's really sad." Mr Sinfield added: "Part of the reason for that is the shortage of move-on accommodation is because of the housing crisis in London in terms of the general stock, places that are affordable access for young people and indeed support accommodation. That's a real crisis."We really want the government strategy to reflect this and to have a special chapter about youth homelessness because it is distinct and different and it needs a response that's credible nationally and supported by regional and local government."The total number of rough sleepers in 2025 is 63% more than 10 years government said it had increased funding for homelessness services by £233m this year, bringing its total expenditure to £1bn, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing added that the latest spending review protected "this record level of investment to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping beyond this financial year".
The Guardian
24-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Labor's Josh Burns takes on new role and new push to address youth homelessness
Labor MP Josh Burns has plans to fix youth homelessness. The federal government's new envoy for social housing and homelessness says the housing system has for too long been stacked against young people, particularly those experiencing homelessness. Burns says Labor is committed to earmarking a portion of the government's planned 55,000 new social housing properties specifically for young people. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email In his first interview as envoy, Burns says the government needs to allocate some of its grants to build social and affordable homes to fix the problem. 'One of the big groups that's missing out, just by the way in which the housing system is designed, is young people,' he says. 'Unless we allocate within government programs for youth specific homes, structurally, they just miss out.' Representing the inner-Melbourne seat of Macnamara since 2019, the 38-year-old is one of the younger MPs in parliament. To get here, he's faced a difficult three-way contest for his seat, fending off both the Liberals and Greens. The grandson of European Jewish immigrants, Burns has experienced a barrage of antisemitism, after the outbreak of war in Gaza. He's been a key voice for the Jewish community in government, on the issue of antisemitism that dominated headlines in the lead-up to the election. 'We need to be able to have difficult conversations, but respectfully and mindfully,' he says. Formerly an adviser to Victorian premier Daniel Andrews before being preselected in Macnamara, Burns has worked his way up the Labor ladder. Before politics, Burns says he worked as a teacher's aide and a factory hand. Burns says he's 'passionate' about his new role, handed to him by Anthony Albanese, with its focus on stopping young people facing homelessness falling through the cracks. 'One of the big things I've been tasked to do is help paint a really clear picture of what's happening at the moment, what some of the barriers are, and where we can have the biggest impact, along with the states and territories and the sector.' One of the most significant problems is the cost of housing for a young person on youth allowance – the welfare payment for those under the age of 22. Community housing providers charge rent at about 25% of assessable income (the youth allowance or jobseeker rate) plus the amount of commonwealth rent assistance (CRA) that person's eligible for. Because youth allowance is lower than the Jobseeker payment, providers can lose up to 30% of rent from a young tenant, versus an older one on jobseeker. Shorna Moore, from Melbourne City Mission (MCM), calls this the 'youth housing penalty'. She says it acts as a disincentive for social housing providers to accommodate someone on youth allowance, because they receive less money. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion 'Young people aged 15 to 24 who are alone with nowhere to live represent 15% of the overall homelessness population, but they only represent 3% of social housing tenants,' Moore says. 'The housing built for a young person might cost the same as … for any other adult, but you need to ask the government for more money to cover the gap in the lower rental [income].' The government and opposition have both said they don't want house prices to fall, but Burns acknowledges that has a flow on effect to the cost of renting, and by extension, homelessness. 'If there are fewer homes for people who can afford to become homeowners, then … there's more people in the rental market, it means more pressure on rental prices,' he says. 'And then there are more people who are trying to access long term social housing or who are living in insecure homes, so all of this is connected.' The consequences of not providing safe housing are severe. Every four days, a homeless person between 15 and 24 dies, the majority by suicide, according to MCM data. The Homelessness Australia chief executive, Kate Colvin, says many young people living in rough conditions, including couch surfing, suffer sexual abuse. 'Young people being sexually exploited is really very common when they're homeless,' she says. As a result, Colvin says her organisation sees 'high rates' of suicide and mental ill health , 'with just really devastating long-term impacts'. MCM and Homelessness Australia are among 170 organisations in the Home Time coalition campaigning for 15,000 of the government's 55,000 promised social and affordable homes to be dedicated to young people. Burns says he's looking at solutions to make building youth-specific housing viable. 'It's very difficult for community housing providers who already have to stretch budgets to bring in [young] people … [It's] ensuring that in planning the next round of social housing builds that we are really paying attention to and allocating funds that help provide new homes for young people.'
The Australian
21-06-2025
- General
- The Australian
Half of homeless Aussie youth asking for help get turned away
Half of young homeless Australians asking for a place to sleep are being turned away, figures from a leading NSW not-for-profit show, with one woman who got lucky in a 'million-to-one' chance now pushing for change. NSW organisation Yfoundations has taken to filming young homeless people as they search for a safe place to sleep, putting a face to the overwhelming demand for help. 'The popularity of shows like Survivor and Alone has turned survival into entertainment,' Yfoundations chief executive John Macmillan told NewsWire. 'This series confronts the raw reality too many young Australians face every day. 'Youth homelessness is not just a statistic; it's a human tragedy.' The content series is called Young and Alone. 'We're fascinated by watching adults battle brutal conditions for fun, but survival isn't a social experiment for young people experiencing homelessness – it's a hard-hitting reality and the content series shines the light on this.' Sydneysider Natasha Ransford was saved by a 'million-to-one' chance, a youth refuge centre saving a bed while she was on school camp. Now nine years later, Ms Ransford, 25, is a youth worker at the very same refuge. 'No young person chooses to be homeless,' she told NewsWire. 'There are a lot of misconceptions that young people are just bad and that they get on drugs, or they don't want to listen to their parents, or they move out and that's why they become homeless. I want to challenge all those misconceptions.' Sydney woman Natasha Ransford works for the youth refuge organisation that took her in as a teenager. Picture: Supplied From ages 14 to 16, Ms Ransford was bouncing between her sister and her dad's house, as her mother's 'severe' alcoholism up-ended the teenager's home life. She found a home with Project Youth in Sydney's southwest. A scholarship from Toyota helped her finish year 12 while working part time, cooking and cleaning for herself after school. 'I had to grow up very quickly and it's been beneficial for me now,' Ms Ransford said. 'I've been paying rent since I was 16, I'm good with money and budgeting. I have a really strong work ethic. 'But to put that onto a 16 year old, it wasn't fair.' In year 10, dropping out of school to go and work seemed like the best option. Ms Ransford's mental health was in poor condition, and she had learnt to use alcohol as a coping mechanism. With the help of Project Youth, support from school and health care, she now holds a Diploma of Community Services and a Certificate IV in Leadership and Management. She was never forced to sleep rough, was able to go from the refuge to transitional housing, and now rents a place with friends. Across the country, there are estimated to be more than 43,000 young people experiencing or at risk of becoming homeless. Picture: NewsWire / Ian Currie Ms Ransford identifies a turning point in her life – when Project Youth held a bed so she could go on school camp. 'I was 16 … I went in one afternoon and told them basically what was going on at home. 'Surprisingly, they had a bedroom available that night, which normally is very, very rare. 'I had year 11 camp the next day. 'I asked them if they could hold the bed for me until after I got back from camp. They did, which they wouldn't be able to do now just because the need has grown so much.' The youth refuge became her home, on a Saturday after school camp. 'The chances of that happening now would be like a million-to-one,' Ms Ransford said. 'I don't think any service can afford to hold a bed for three nights for someone. 'It's unfortunately the case of if you can get it that time, then you can. First in, first serve, but I quite often think that was a turning point in my life.' Yfoundations has launched a petition calling on the federal and state governments to make ending youth homelessness a national priority, with the development of a targeted plan and funding. 'For too long, the specific and complex needs of children and young people at risk of or experiencing homelessness have been assumed to be the same as those of adults and have not been explicitly addressed in government plans to address homelessness,' the petition reads. Blair Jackson Reporter Blair's journalism career has taken him from Perth, to New Zealand, Queensland and now Melbourne. Blair Jackson
News.com.au
21-06-2025
- General
- News.com.au
‘Human tragedy': Half of homeless Aussie youth asking for help get turned away
Half of young homeless Australians asking for a place to sleep are being turned away, figures from a leading NSW not-for-profit show, with one woman who got lucky in a 'million-to-one' chance now pushing for change. NSW organisation Yfoundations has taken to filming young homeless people as they search for a safe place to sleep, putting a face to the overwhelming demand for help. 'The popularity of shows like Survivor and Alone has turned survival into entertainment,' Yfoundations chief executive John Macmillan told NewsWire. 'This series confronts the raw reality too many young Australians face every day. 'Youth homelessness is not just a statistic; it's a human tragedy.' The content series is called Young and Alone. 'We're fascinated by watching adults battle brutal conditions for fun, but survival isn't a social experiment for young people experiencing homelessness – it's a hard-hitting reality and the content series shines the light on this.' Sydneysider Natasha Ransford was saved by a 'million-to-one' chance, a youth refuge centre saving a bed while she was on school camp. Now nine years later, Ms Ransford, 25, is a youth worker at the very same refuge. 'No young person chooses to be homeless,' she told NewsWire. 'There are a lot of misconceptions that young people are just bad and that they get on drugs, or they don't want to listen to their parents, or they move out and that's why they become homeless. I want to challenge all those misconceptions.' From ages 14 to 16, Ms Ransford was bouncing between her sister and her dad's house, as her mother's 'severe' alcoholism up-ended the teenager's home life. She found a home with Project Youth in Sydney's southwest. A scholarship from Toyota helped her finish year 12 while working part time, cooking and cleaning for herself after school. 'I had to grow up very quickly and it's been beneficial for me now,' Ms Ransford said. 'I've been paying rent since I was 16, I'm good with money and budgeting. I have a really strong work ethic. 'But to put that onto a 16 year old, it wasn't fair.' In year 10, dropping out of school to go and work seemed like the best option. Ms Ransford's mental health was in poor condition, and she had learnt to use alcohol as a coping mechanism. With the help of Project Youth, support from school and health care, she now holds a Diploma of Community Services and a Certificate IV in Leadership and Management. She was never forced to sleep rough, was able to go from the refuge to transitional housing, and now rents a place with friends. Ms Ransford identifies a turning point in her life – when Project Youth held a bed so she could go on school camp. 'I was 16 … I went in one afternoon and told them basically what was going on at home. 'Surprisingly, they had a bedroom available that night, which normally is very, very rare. 'I had year 11 camp the next day. 'I asked them if they could hold the bed for me until after I got back from camp. They did, which they wouldn't be able to do now just because the need has grown so much.' The youth refuge became her home, on a Saturday after school camp. 'The chances of that happening now would be like a million-to-one,' Ms Ransford said. 'I don't think any service can afford to hold a bed for three nights for someone. 'It's unfortunately the case of if you can get it that time, then you can. First in, first serve, but I quite often think that was a turning point in my life.' Yfoundations has launched a petition calling on the federal and state governments to make ending youth homelessness a national priority, with the development of a targeted plan and funding. 'For too long, the specific and complex needs of children and young people at risk of or experiencing homelessness have been assumed to be the same as those of adults and have not been explicitly addressed in government plans to address homelessness,' the petition reads.
RNZ News
14-06-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Youth-led Hīkoi highlights Auckland homelessness crisis says advocate
About 100 people marched on the footpath from Karangahape Road to downtown Auckland. Photo: Kick Back / Aaron Hendry A youth advocate says the turnout at a hīkoi to highlight youth homelessness in Auckland CBD clearly shows the pain and trauma young people are experiencing. Co-founder and manager of youth development organisation Kick Back, Aaron Hendry, said about 100 people marched on the footpath from Karangahape Road to downtown Auckland after noon Saturday. He said the hīkoi was organised by youth who had or still experienced homelessness. "Many young people in our community have been denied emergency housing, are couch surfing, living in hostels and in unsafe living environments, because this government and successive governments have not invested in a clear strategy to end youth homelessness. "This is them standing up and saying, 'We have a voice, we are going to use it'." Kick Back was actively monitoring 140 young people in the city, who do not have stable housing - some as young as 11 years old. Hendry said marching on the footpath instead of the road was a way of recognising where many had slept rough. "Young people denied shelter because of government decisions around emergency housing had to sleep on Karangahape Road or Queen Street. Youth protestors wave flags during a hīkoi to highlight youth homelessness in Auckland CBD. Photo: Kick Back / Aaron Hendry "They are taking the street back and saying, 'This is where you left us, this is not a place for any child or young person to live'." He said Labour MPs Shanan Halbert and Kieran McAnulty, and Green MP Ricardo Menéndez March participated in the march. Auckland councillor and mayoral candidate Kerrin Leoni also attended. "Central government have taken quite a lot of money away from homeless initiatives and it is a real concern for our city," Leoni said. "There are multiple issues young homeless people are experiencing and hearing a story of a suicide today is heart-breaking, as a leader of this city, to know this is happening in the wealthiest and biggest city of our country. She said, if elected mayor, she would work with community housing and poverty action groups to find ways Auckland Council could help. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
