Preventative Housing First for care experienced young people

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The context

Research consistently highlights that young people leaving local authority care are more likely than other young people to become homeless or experience housing instability. People leaving care are people who have always already faced adversity, and will often still be dealing with complex issues without parental/wider family support. This can place them at higher risk of homelessness.

Like the care system, the homelessness system can exacerbate trauma, institutionalise, and cause harm. In 2017, the Care Inspectorate found 45% West Lothian care leavers presented as homeless at least once. The youth homelessness charity Rock Trust and local social landlord, Almond Housing Association (Almond HA), responded by devising a new housing and support option for young people leaving care facing the highest probability of homelessness.

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The intervention

Whilst Rock Trust had long provided housing support in temporary and settled tenancies in West Lothian, they knew services didn’t work for a small cohort of young people. Almond HA similarly had experience of referrals for homeless young people with very high needs, which local support services were not designed to meet. It was at West Lothian Council’s 15+ Planning Group, attended by both agencies, where the need for an alternative housing and support option for care leavers with ‘complex need indicators’ crystalised.

To meet this gap, Rock Trust and Almond HA, with additional funds from Housing First Europe Hub, committed resources to a two-year Housing First pilot for five care leavers. Rock Trust employed support workers whilst Almond HA pledged secure tenancies, a budget for personalised furniture and input from a dedicated housing officer. Referrals were limited to care leavers with ‘complex needs indicators’ for whom no appropriate temporary, supported or permanent housing option appeared to exist.

Initial referrals were for 16-17 year old care leavers, all of whom had experienced childhood trauma, multiple moves, instability, a lack of security and a history of behavioural problems. A majority had experience of substance and mental health issues. Support was designed on a Housing First for Youth model (developed in Canada). Housing First principles apply: but there’s a distinct emphasis on youth choice and self-determination, positive youth development orientation and social/community integration.

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The outcome

By 2020, Housing First for Youth had been expanded and secured Council funding. 12 young people had been housed, with all but one sustaining their tenancy (including some planned moves between tenancies). The one person who decided to end their tenancy continued to work with Rock Trust support. More Scottish authorities have started to explore Housing First for youth (not always exclusively for those with care experience), with Rock Trust support now expanding to Fife.

Two thirds of young people housed responded to an evaluation survey. All but one said their home made them feel they were ‘doing well in life’, and that they no longer worried about losing it once they’d been there six months. They valued the sticky, ‘portable’ relationship offered by Rock Trust support. The long-term, unconditional nature of care seemed to make young people more receptive to positive life changes. All but one said mental health and satisfaction with life had also improved.

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Key insights

• Housing First for Youth can play a preventative role for people in the care system for whom, when existing housing options are considered, homelessness appears a predictable future outcome
• for people leaving care who’ve often experienced trauma, multiple moves and a lack of security, the personalised, ‘sticky’, relational support of Housing First for Youth can be transformative
• Housing First for Youth projects may need to develop strategic approaches for influencing access to, and delivery of, services for young people by other statutory providers, especially mental health

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Find out more…

Ali MacDermid, Assistant Director, Rock Trust
alistair.macdermid@rocktrust.org

Tracey Longworth, Housing Support Manager, Almond HA
tracey.longworth@almondha.org.uk