Over 100 young people call for action on youth homelessness
Over 100 young people who have been affected by homelessness have called for urgent action to address the issue.
Those involved with the 'Relentless Change Programme' run by the Northern Ireland Youth Forum have said politicians and service leaders need to meet with the people affected and stop looking at them as statistics.
The programme was helped by funding from the National Lottery Community Fund and worked in partnership with ulster University, Extern and the NIHE.
Saoirse McEvoy found herself homeless at the age of 17 and said the RCP had helped turn her life around.
She took a course at Ulster University and is now a peer mentor with the NIYF.
"Being on the Relentless Change Project has changed my life massively in relation to my mental health, before I started the project I was not in a good place," she said.
"To be in that situation is scary, because you don't know what's going to happen the next day.
"You're just thinking 'right I have somewhere to stay tonight, but what am I doing after this, the day after, the month after?'
"I had the most brilliant experience from this project and made the most amazing friends.
"I gained lots of skills and developed my qualities and having the opportunity to experience university was incredible.”
Curtis-Ray Watson and Daniel Potts also took part in the major project, run over the last two years and have called for a common-sense approach to tackling homelessness.
"In Belfast, there's tonnes of empty building and they could be converted into safe spaces for people to live," Curtis-Ray said.
"Even if it's just a one-floor apartment where they have solid beds for someone to get out of the cold, to stay safe and dry at night."
Daniel Potts worked with the project and said it was crucial to get people off the streets.
"I suppose it's just overall security for them as well," he said.
"I know at night time they're more at risk whether it be muggings or hypothermia, or things like that.
"We walked around Belfast and realised how many buildings are derelict or not in use and even one of them could be turned into a centre."
The RCP has focussed on giving young people the life skills to escape homelessness through work placements, university education and one-to-one sessions.