Thousands of young people could face homelessness across the West Midlands this winter

New research found one young person faces homelessness every 4 minutes

Author: Lauren WattPublished 20th Nov 2024

An estimated 3300 young people could face homelessness across the West Midlands this winter.

That's according to new research from the country’s leading youth homelessness charity Centrepoint.

Nationally that number rose to 23,000, with 71% of formerly homeless young people saying that being homeless worsened their mental health and two thirds of those surveyed said they felt anxious for their safety because they had nowhere to stay at Christmas.

Doctor Helen Miles, Head of Psychologically Informed Environments (PIE) at Centrepoint says: “Experiencing homelessness at any age can have a huge and long-lasting impact on a person’s physical and mental health, but young people are particularly vulnerable.

“The trauma and instability of not having a safe home, family or network to turn to can severely affect a young person’s sense of physical and emotional safety, which can impact on their ability to engage in life opportunities, critical at this age in order to reach their full potential in the future.

“Our snow globe installation on Southbank is a powerful visual representation of some of the hidden struggles homeless young people face, and how important the right support is in enabling them to move on from homelessness for good.”

Judith Ford from Wyre Forest & South Worcestershire Nightstop said:

"Nobody is homeless in isolation. Homelessness has relationship breakdowns as one of its root causes. Poverty, unemployment, economic disadvantage. All of these are factors that we see in Worcestershire.

Don't struggle on your own. Get in touch straight away because the longer you, leave it. You know, the greater the problem is going to be. So give us a shout out if we can't help, then we'll certainly find somebody who can for you."

The local charity is also looking for more volunteer homes to host young people for one night of emergency accommodation. You can find out more about the work they do across the county here.

You can find out more about Centrepoint here.

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