Shadow Minister for Youth Andrew Wall has lended his support to Youth Homelessness Matters Day, which is today.
“It is alarming that nearly half of the homeless population are under 25 years of age and not all of these people are ‘sleeping rough,’” Mr Wall said today.
“I am particularly concerned about the issue of what could be referred to as the ‘young working homeless’. These are young people who are working but earning minimum wages, and who find it difficult to support themselves due to the high cost of living in the ACT.
It’s nice that Wall is raising awareness of the issue What would be even nicer if this release were outlining some sort of plan of action, instead of just ‘support’.
UPDATE Shane Rattenbury weighs in.
“In the last financial year young people aged 15 to 24 years accounted for thirty per cent of all
people accessing specialist homelessness services in the ACT,” said Mr Rattenbury.“ACT Housing is committed to supporting young people who are experiencing homelessness;
not only helping them with accommodation, but ensuring they have the confidence and
opportunities to participate in our community.“It is not a common view to picture homelessness as a young person living in emergency
accommodation, or couch surfing with friends, not knowing where they will sleep from night to
night. Unfortunately, this inconstancy is exactly what many young people here today have
experienced while living in Canberra.
[Image via Nickolas Nikolic (CC BY 2.0)]
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