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- Prevention
National Youth Homelessness Scheme
Prevention
Intervening early to prevent homelessness amongst young people is an important part of Local Authority homelessness strategies, working with young people before the door to the family home closes behind them. These early interventions should be delivered in conjunction with key partners such as Children's Services, Connexions, the youth service and extended schools.
Teenage years are a time of transition, as children grow into adults; a young person's role changes from pupil to worker. From being a child with an assumed right to live in the family home to a young adult for whom housing becomes conditional on behaviour, skills and on a young person's own income.
By the time a young person reaches 16, families under stress may identify living apart as the best solution. Young people and their families need to be able make informed decisions about whether to live apart and, if they need it, to have access to appropriate resources and skilled support if homelessness is to be prevented.
Although remaining at home is not an option for young people who are suffering abuse, young people generally have improved life-chances the longer they stay at with family. Work that prevents crises and enables those who can, to stay together, enables resources to be focussed on those most in need.
This module looks at some of the options that local authorities and their partners are taking to preventing homelessness amongst young people.
Each element is useful in its own right but most effective is an approach which combines different interventions to create responsive, flexible and holistic services with and for young people.
A number of agencies have a role to play in a young person's life and local housing authorities can to contribute to and commission, partnership work that benefits from a joined up approach. Supporting interventions that together create better outcomes for better outcomes for young people, their families and communities.
