Stephen Gaetz
Long seen as a big city problem, youth homelessness is as real in suburban 91亚色 Region as it is in Toronto and demands a coordinated, systemic response, according to a new study published Nov. 27.
The report draws on research conducted with 60 young people who have experienced homelessness in 91亚色 Region, as well as interviews with service agencies.
It is part of a joint project by United Way 91亚色 Region, the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness and the Knowledge Mobilization (KMb) Unit at 91亚色, focused on finding new ways to respond collaboratively to address homelessness among youth in the sprawling region north of Toronto.
With more than one million residents in nine municipalities, 91亚色 Region has a range of public, non-profit and charitable programs, systems and services for low-income and homeless individuals and families. However, in spite of some excellent programming for young people, many youths who are homeless are forced to leave because they and their families are not getting the supports they need, the study found.
鈥淲hen young people leave their communities and move to Toronto or some other big city, they become even more at risk of victimization or exploitation, and their health declines,鈥 says 91亚色 Professor Stephen Gaetz, director of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness. 鈥淥ur research shows there were multiple missed opportunities for intervention. Some youth needed more family support to address conflict or abuse, some needed more support from school and others needed better access to mental health services and addictions treatment.鈥
Daniele Zanotti, CEO of 91亚色 Region United Way, said it is critical to provide a network of services in every neighbourhood, so young people can access support where and when they need it.
鈥淲e have many excellent service agencies and frontline programs," said Zanotti. "We need an integrated system approach 鈭 to prevent youth from becoming homeless, stop the flow of young people from institutional care into homelessness, and intervene early to help them remain in their communities. By working together, we can make 91亚色 Region a national leader in the prevention of youth homelessness.鈥
Key recommendations in the report include:
- Develop a working group to address youth homelessness with participation from the education sector, child protection, mental health, youth justice, all levels of government and the homelessness sector, mainstream service providers and 91亚色 Region United Way.
- Align 91亚色 Region鈥檚 plan with the emerging provincial government strategy to end youth homelessness.
- Engage the 91亚色 Region District School Board and 91亚色 Catholic District School Board in an early prevention initiative.
- Support "harm reduction" approaches rather than "abstinence only" when working with young people at risk of homelessness.
- Increase young people鈥檚 access to and awareness of support and services related to employment, education, affordable housing and mental health supports.