True Vision

Last year in the UK 103,000 young people presented themselves as homeless or at risk of homelessness, but the real number is much higher as thousands of teenagers go under the radar by sofa surfing or staying with friends.

 

Filmed over 9 months, Stacey Dooley: The Young and Homeless for BBC Children in Need, gives a voice to some of society’s most vulnerable young people, sensitively sharing their thoughts and concerns, shining a light on their struggle to find a safe place to sleep and their journey in securing a stable and permanent home.

We follow Josh (18) in Blackpool as he tries to hold down a job while bouncing between night shelters, sofa surfing and sleeping rough. As he’s 18 and is deemed as having no local connection, his only option is to save enough money and find a place in private rented accommodation

Care leaver Shelby (18) slipped through the net when she turned 18 and ended up on the streets. She has her heart set on finding her own flat as she wants to avoid the hostel circuit and getting in with the wrong crowd. She talks about the danger of being a girl on the streets and the importance of having friends to look out for you.

 

Shelby’s friend Caitlin (19) has spent the past year sofa surfing and staying in squats. In her lowest point she sleeps in a tent given by a charity with her boyfriend under some railway arches. We follow her journey as she realises being independent is not all it’s cracked up to be and that she is craving help and stability. We see her move into an all girls hostel and reflect on the past few months…

Shy Millie (17) left her family home at 14. With ambitions to become a doctor Millie feels hostel life isn’t for her so with the support of CiN funded project, The Junction, Millie moves in with a local host family and finds the stability she needs to focus on getting to Uni.

Read about Stacey's journey on the BBC3 website here.

Stacey Dooley on This Morning

 

For help and support:

Centrepoint

Together with our partners, we support more than 10,000 homeless young people each year. At Centrepoint, we help vulnerable young people by giving them the practical and emotional support they need to find a job and live independently. 

https://centrepoint.org.uk 

LifeShare

Lifeshare is a voluntary organisation established to help meet the needs of homeless and vulnerable people in Manchester and Salford. The first point of contact is with people on the streets, offering practical assistance, support and information. From this point we offer continued assistance that enables people to secure suitable accommodation, support them in maintaining their tenancies, and help them to access initiatives that carry their lives forward. We believe that all people regardless of race, creed, sexuality, gender, age, level of ability or HIV status are entitled to respect and dignity and should be afforded equal opportunities. We are a non-religious organization and have no political affiliations

https://www.lifeshare.org.uk

Streetlife

Providing support, shelter and direction to help vulnerable young people find their way 

https://www.wearestreetlife.org

Mustard Tree

Mustard Tree has an established track record over the past 25 years, supporting people across Greater Manchester in poverty and facing homelessness. We create opportunities for people to help themselves through providing practical support, friendship, connections into work, improvements to health and wellbeing plus new experiences to encourage aspiration.

https://www.mustardtree.org.uk

Depaul

At Depaul UK we empower young people experiencing homelessness. We provide emergency accommodation, supported housing and other services to help people rebuild their lives.

https://uk.depaulcharity.org

Encompass

Encompass Southwest is an independent charity that provides a range of advice, information and support services in communities, concentrating on financial inclusion and housing and homelessness.

https://bpag-encompass.org.uk 

Nightstop

https://www.nightstop.org.uk/

Nightstop is a charity service which provides emergency accommodation for young people experiencing homelessness, in the homes of community volunteers.