By Naomi Boyd
In sharing her thoughts during Western Australian Youth Week, St John of God Healthcare Homelessness and Support Services Director Naomi Boyd says that the less visible reality of youth homelessness is that there are thousands of young people in Australia who are not yet homeless but are living in homes that don’t provide the necessary physical or emotional safety.
In our society, there is a persistent image of youth homelessness as the teenager sleeping rough on city streets with nowhere else to go.
The less visible reality is that there are thousands of young people in Australia who are not yet homeless but are living in homes that don’t provide the necessary physical or emotional safety.
These young people are exposed to violence, addiction, overcrowding, abuse or poverty and they often don’t have anywhere to turn.
In addition to crisis services being overwhelmed, many services aren’t available to young people living in these situations because they aren’t ‘officially’ homeless.
Whether it’s couch surfing or bunking with friends, young people at risk of homelessness will often find ways to stay away from home as much as possible, whilst also staying off the streets. But this doesn’t protect them from the complex issues they still face.
Young people are vulnerable to this sort of disruption and often have higher rates of substance abuse, mental health issues, are less engaged at school and less likely to look after their physical health if they don’t feel safe at home.
From the outside, what many people may see when they look at a young person at risk of homelessness is a difficult teenager. However, what these young people need most is to feel safe and supported.
Providing a place of safety can help set young people experiencing such trauma on the path to discovering their strengths and goals and lead them towards a more hope-filled future.
The COVID pandemic has taken its toll on young people within our communities. Many places that would have been places of temporary safety, such as community support services, sports, recreation groups, schools, and workplaces, have had their operations limited or stopped for some time.
In many instances, the means to escape from a turbulent home life disappeared overnight, effectively cutting off young people from their only support networks and places of safety.
The number of young people in Australia experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness has been steadily on the rise, with COVID and the rental accommodation crisis across the country adding even more complexity, particularly in regional and remote areas.
This Youth Week we are reminded of the disruption that the risk of homelessness can have on a young person’s life. It’s not only their wellbeing Youth week 2022 that is impacted, but also their education, transition to employment, and ability to form stable and healthy social networks. Through the valuable work of early intervention and prevention services, like Horizon House, young people at risk of homelessness can be supported to reach their goals, gain independence, and become valuable contributors to their communities.
St John of God Social Outreach Director Homelessness and Support Services Naomi Boyd leads the Casa Venegas and Horizon House services for St John of God Social Outreach, part of St John of God Health Care. A mental health nurse with postgraduate qualifications in healthcare leadership and management, Naomi has spent two decades working in the sector. She is passionate about recovery and trauma informed care, which are the foundation of the Casa Venegas and Horizon House services.
St John of God Health Care’s Horizon House Program provides accommodation, care and support to young people aged 16 to 22 years who are currently experiencing, or are at serious risk of, homelessness. Horizon House operates in various locations in Western Australia and Victoria. More information: sjog.org.au/horizonhouse