Foyer Update is a monthly feature contributed by the Foyer Federation and written by Sophie Livingstone, Head of Policy & Communications. Views expressed are those of the author. Email: sophie@foyer.net
New Website Launched: www.giveusachance.net
By Sophie Livingstone, Head of Policy & Communications
The Foyer Federation launched a campaign about giving young people who have had disrupted, disadvantaged, or chaotic backgrounds the opportunity to catch up. It's a campaign to make the system fairer and help change the way young people are viewed by society.
Homeless young people have, often for reasons beyond their control, missed out on a significant proportion of their schooling, and lack the necessary qualifications for sustained employment. All young people deserve a chance to realise their full potential. Some don't get the support they need.
Many young people in Foyers could, if given the opportunity, attain qualifications at a much higher level than those they currently have, thus increasing their chances of getting a decent job or going to university. Learning is, therefore, integral to the holistic Foyer approach. It's not just about formal courses, it's about giving young people the confidence and the tools they need to cope with living independently, and helping them to move back into mainstream education, training, or work. But funding for these types of learning programmes is very difficult to access.
The Foyer Federation has been calling on the Government to make learning for homeless young people a funding priority for Learning and Skills Councils across the country. It is also concerned about the boundaries which limit disadvantaged young people's access to services. As mentioned in last month's update, if you're over 19 years old and want to study full-time in Further Education, you cannot claim Housing Benefit. For many young people who have had disrupted and chaotic learning backgrounds, this is their last opportunity to catch up with their peers.
This approach is replicated in the Youth Green Paper, published last July, which talks mainly about 'teenagers' and often about 16 and 17 year olds. It does not, however, focus enough on the process of transition, which takes place at different rates for different young people. In particular, there is not enough recognition of the fact that some young people have already missed out, as far as their development and aspirations are concerned. Age boundaries should not exclude them from being treated as 'young people' beyond the age of 19, or, indeed, from accessing the support services they need.
The Foyer Federation has also launched a series of posters in Westminster and is now directing people to a new website - www.giveusachance.net - with the aim of engaging MPs and other stakeholders in campaigning to retain the services that help young people realise their full potential.
The stories of Foyer residents will be posted on the website and visitors to it will be asked to contribute their experiences of being young in Britain and sign an online petition.