Helping young people moving out of care

Helping young people moving out of care
Catherine Maher and Mike Allen
Focus Ireland
Investing in young people to prevent a lost generation in Europe: key policy and practice in addressing youth homelessness
8th November 2013, Prague, Czech Republic

Today’s Presentation
History of Focus Ireland’s involvement
The Services Response
The Advocacy Response
Where next?

Focus Ireland & Care
Focus Ireland established 1985: Day services and street outreach
Front-line staff recognise institutional care background of many customers.
This link is internationally established.
This led Focus Ireland to:
Advocacy response - to change the system
Services response - to provide assistance

Services Response: First Steps
The Coffee Shop
The Extension (1988)
A day service for young people on the streets
Situated in a disused shirt-factory
‘Young Women’s Aftercare Project’ (1989)
Four beds for young women who had been in care and had experienced street homelessness
Share living and cooking space. No cook
Live-in staff

What we discovered
Ireland’s Legacy of Sexual Abuse
Among the first guidelines on how to staff should respond to cases of abuse
Need for Services for children homeless and in care: ‘Off the Streets’

Second steps
The Loft
Drop in service for 12-18 year olds, 7 days a week
Closed – due reduced need – in 2004
Caretakers
Emergency Accommodation care
16- 24 year old, with complex problems
Chead Cheim Aftercare Service
South Dublin, Waterford, Limerick
Pathways Guidebook for Young People

Our Aftercare Model
This is not a homeless service
Two approaches
Aftercare: Residential
Aftercare: Settlement
Referral process from Health Service
Integration with other State (HSE) supports (training, education etc)
Aim: support into independent living

Trends and challenges
Aftercare Services in all major cities?
Is this a job of a ‘homeless’ organisation?
The need for advanced planning
Getting engagement from young people with multiple complex needs
Young mothers
Transitions into independent adulthood?

Advocacy Response: Documenting the problem
Building coalition with StreetWise, Residential Managers Association’
‘Forgotten Children’ (1989). Highlighted extent of homelessness among children
‘Care Full Planning’ (1990)
‘At What Cost’ (1991): Highlighted inadequate children’s residences
Contributed to ‘Childcare Act’ 2001

Setting the agenda through Research
The first major longitudinal study of people who grew up in care in Ireland
‘Out on their own’ (1998)
36% of sample experienced homelessness with 6 months of leaving care
Hospitals used as accommodation – one for 52 nights
‘Left out on their own’ (2000)
Series of ‘Recommendations’

A campaign for change
Objective: create a legal right to aftercare provision.
The State SHALL (not MAY) provide aftercare
Built a coalition of NGOs
Involved care-leavers
Mass e-mail campaign to Ministers
Drafted alternative legislation
Won commitments from (then) Opposition

Achievements and challenges
Issue is now on the policy agenda
New ‘Children and Families Agency’
National Aftercare Implementation Strategy – but no new money
Young people from care exempt from welfare cuts
Won commitment to legislation from new Minister

Minister to Parliament: 24th October 2013
…I gave a commitment that I was going to deal with the issue of after-care and put it on a statutory basis that a young person in care could have an assessment of his or her need done. I intend to do that and I am working very hard on the amendment.

Where next?
Ensure the legal change is made.
Use this to fight for adequate resources.
Campaign for more effective early intervention and care services.
Research the outcomes of current service provision.
Move towards a broader framework of ‘transitions to independent adulthood’

Helping young people moving out of care

More Related Content

What's hot (20)

Viewers also liked (20)

Similar to Helping young people moving out of care (20)

More from FEANTSA (20)

Recently uploaded (20)

Helping young people moving out of care