Refuges turn away troubled youth

Youth refuges are turning away hundreds of troubled youths, says a new report.

Data collected by the ‘Streetwalk’ program, which helps young people sleeping rough in the CBD find a safe place to stay and provides necessities like food, transport and blankets, showed that out of 221 referrals made last year by social workers, only 90 were successful.

The 131 unsuccessful referrals were almost all due to a lack of available beds in refuges.

The results of this research echoed those released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare in July, which showed that over 60 per cent of the young people seeking accommodation in specialist youth homeless services in NSW were turned away.

CEO of the Youth Accommodation Association, Michael Coffey, said: “These figures show that too many young people are being turned away from services due to insufficient resources.”

“Assisting a young person during their first experience of homelessness is our best opportunity to stop them transitioning into long-term homelessness.”

Manager of the Streetwalk program, Gary Lockhart, said the lack of funding for youth refuges means not all referrals can be accommodated and there are not enough youth workers to provide supervision for larger numbers.

“There would be more refuge places if there were more workers to work there … to deal with the kids,” Lockhart said.

“[The people we turn away] have to find other places, stay with friends, go to an internet cafe, or sleep outside.”

The Australian Government released has released a paper outlining the steps they are taking to combat homelessness, but the benefits of which are yet to be felt by young persons on the street.

Streetwalk workers aim to build trust with their clients and provide information about agencies and services available to them.

Streetwalk does not currently receive funding as a standalone program, but receives funds from Don Bosco House – a Marrickville refuge for homeless youths aged 15-18 – which is run by Youth Off The Streets.

Lockhart said the main aim of Streetwalk is to “facilitate the process of a young person leaving the streets, but not everyone can have access to support at the time that they need it.”

By Lu Sun