YMCA welcomes fall in youth rough sleeping as it calls for work to continue to support young people vulnerable to homelessness
YMCA, the oldest and largest youth charity in the world, is calling for today’s fall in youth rough sleeping in London to be just the start as it is revealed 5% less young people slept on the streets of the capital last year.
The charity, which provides nearly 10,000 beds a night across the UK and almost 1,600 in London alone, says that while a fall in numbers was a positive sign, it was still concerned that more than 10% of people who slept rough in 2015-16 were aged 18 to 25-years-old.
In total, 826 young people slept on the streets of London at least once in 2015-16, 32% more than in 2011/12.
Statistics have been compiled in the latest Combined Homelessness and Information Network (CHAIN) report released today by the Greater London Authority.
Figures run from 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2016. Across all age ranges, rough sleeping in the capital rose by 7% over the 12 months, up to 8,096.
Denise Hatton, Chief Executive of YMCA England, the national council of YMCAs across England and Wales, said: “YMCA welcomes news that youth rough sleeping has fallen in London despite the overall numbers of rough sleepers rising once again. It is a positive step forward and evidence of the good work being done to support young people in crisis.
“However, it is hard to see past the fact that 826 young people slept rough in just 12 months in the capital. It should be unimaginable that any young person is forced to sleep out and our YMCAs continue to be approached by young people who are on the streets and have nowhere else to turn.
“With 32% more young people sleeping rough today compared to four years ago, it is imperative that decision makers see this fall in numbers as only the start and that policies are created that will continue to have a long-term impact on youth rough sleeping and youth homelessness more widely.”
There are eight YMCAs in London providing a range of services to young people, including accommodation, skills and training courses, apprenticeships, youth clubs and health and wellbeing services.
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For more information or to request an interview with a YMCA representative, please contact Andrew Mortimer, Communications Manager, at andrew.mortimer@england.ymca.org.uk or call 020 7186 9543.
YMCA in England and Wales
- Founded in 1844, YMCA in England and Wales is made up of 130 member YMCAs working to ensure that young people have opportunities to thrive and contribute positively to their communities.
- YMCA operates in over 660 different communities in England and Wales impacting upon the lives of more than 600,000 people every year.
- YMCAs provide almost 11,000 beds for young people every night. YMCA is the largest voluntary sector provider of safe, supported accommodation for young men and women.
- YMCA in England and Wales enables nearly 53,000 people every year to engage in education, skills and training to enable them to improve their opportunities in the job market.
- YMCA is the largest voluntary sector provider of health and wellbeing services promoting physical activity.
- For further information please visit ymca.org.uk
YMCAs in London
- YMCA provides almost 1,600 bed spaces every night in the capital, making it the largest voluntary sector provider of accommodation to homeless young people in London.
- London YMCAs provide training and education services to 50,000 people every year
- YMCA is the largest voluntary sector provider of health and wellbeing services in London with 71,000 people attending one of our gyms annually.
- Across the eight London YMCAs, we provide 2,600 childcare places and 27,000 before or after school services for children and young people.
- More than 3,000 young people attend London YMCA’s youth clubs while we also provide support to more than 600 young people in need of drug or counselling services.
CHAIN
Figures relate to the number of people seen sleeping rough by street outreach teams in London between April 2015 and March 2016. Information in the report is derived from the Combined Homelessness and Information Network (CHAIN), a multi-agency database recording information about rough sleepers and the wider street population in London. CHAIN, which is commissioned and funded by the Greater London Authority (GLA) and managed by St Mungo’s, represents the UK’s most detailed and comprehensive source of information about rough sleeping.
The full CHAIN report can be seen at: https://data.london.gov.uk/dataset/chain-reports