New efforts to tackle cycle of young homelessness in Sheffield
Depaul want volunteers to offer a spare room to a young person who needs a safe place to stay.
A Sheffield charity says there are dozens of homeless teenagers in the city who need a safe place to sleep.
Depaul are launching a new scheme to tackle the issue - with volunteers offering a room for 16-25 year olds to stay in.
The charity already helps hundreds of young people every year - but say there are still many that need help.
Amy Smith is managing the new project - she told Hallam being homeless can be an awful experience for young people:
"It's absolutely terrifying for a young person- most of the people using Nightstop currently are there because of a relationship breakdown with their own family so it's not by their own choice. So we're hoping Nightstop can bridge that gap and stop people ending up in that situation and provide them with a more stable future."
"Younger people are less financially secure and the options available to them are a lot more limited - they often lend themselves then to staying with friends or friends of friends and as that cycle continues you start to question how well do they know these people they're staying with and what level of risk are they putting themselves at."
Deapaul are appealing for people to come forward to offer young people a safe place to sleep in the city.
Nightstop is a scheme that's been successful in other parts of the UK - there are currently 33 places where it's in place. It's provided over 13,000 bed-nights.
Amy says it should make a real difference in South Yorkshire:
"Being able to prevent somebody from being homeless or spending their nights on the streets is absolutely life-changing. Being able to prevent them from entering that cycle and all the dangers and risks associated with being homeless is going to have a huge impact on the lives of young people."
"Nightstop relies on the generosity of our hosts really so without them we can't offer this really valuable service."