Annual review 2006/07
Helping homeless young people work towards a more fulfilling, brighter future
“ Centrepoint doesn’t want you to just ‘be’ here, they want you to ‘live’ here – to find your feet, learn new skills and get a purpose in life.” Darren
Contents Introduction........................................................2 A year in action...................................................4 Jean Pierre’s story................................................8 Centrepoint overview........................................10 Facts and figures...............................................12 Homelessness – the big picture.........................14 More than just housing.....................................16 Matthew’s story............................................... 18 Mental health...................................................20 Healthy futures.................................................22 Care leavers in Worcestershire...........................24
Single room rent restrictions..............................27 Samia’s story.....................................................28 Learning and work............................................30 Moving on........................................................34 Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme.......................37 Tia’s story..........................................................38 Centrepoint partnering and alliances.................40 Financial review................................................42 What we did in 2006/2007...............................44 Thank you.........................................................48
Photo: Claudia Janke
Annual review 2006/07
Introduction
2006/07 has been another incredible year for Centrepoint. We have worked with more homeless young people than ever before to turn things around and build firm foundations for a more fulfilling, brighter future. We do this through a unique combination of direct service delivery, policy, research and external influencing work and the facilitation of local partnerships that develop best practice. We want a society in which no young person will ever fail to realise their potential. Since 1969 we have helped over 70,000 young people who were on a downward spiral, and as we work towards our 40th anniversary will continue to provide homeless young people with a safe place to call home and the chance to build a better life. In March 2006 we took over Stopover Limited, a charity providing direct services to single homeless people in South East London. The integration of Stopover has been a key focus for 2006/07 and now enables us to help over 1,800 young people each year.
Photo: Claudia Janke
At any one time we can now accommodate nearly 670 young people and daily we work with about 825. Most of the young people with whom we work have little self worth or respect which is why our award winning support and development approach focuses on the positive aspects of their lives. Over 98% of Centrepoint’s young people and 90% of Stopover’s young people have a support and development plan, whether this be learning new skills through our
Annual review 2006/07
Lifewise programme or training as part of our apprenticeship scheme. This year, Centrepoint also launched Easington Youthbuild, a pioneering affordable housing and training project based in the heart of the Easington community in the North East of England. The two year pilot aims to enable local young people to work, live and contribute to the life of Easington by providing local, affordable homes and training opportunities through the renovation of void and derelict housing. We are hugely privileged that our patron HRH Prince William shows continued support and commitment to Centrepoint and this year we also began preparing for the Concert for Diana celebrations. As always we would like to give sincere and heartfelt thanks to all of the supporters, volunteers and staff that make our work so successful. Thanks also to the donors who have supported us this year and who have enabled us to carry on doing the work we do. We would like to thank all those who have helped us in our work and the young people we work with themselves. Anthony Lawton CEO
“ I want to thank you because if it was not for you I would have never found my confidence, I would not even talk. You have shown me to live for the future not in the past and let out feelings, not let them build up inside.� Young person, Oxford
Photo: Claudia Janke
Annual review 2006/07
A year in action April
May
April 2006: At the beginning of April 2006 we were working with 745 homeless young people in our residential and support services.
June 2006: Centrepoint was one of the beneficiaries of the Chakravarty Polo Cup held on Saturday 17 June at the Ham Polo Club attended by our patron HRH Prince William.
The Flora London marathon took place with 16 runners raising £28,000 for Centrepoint. They battled through a gruelling 26 miles against fatigue, dehydration and rain to finish, with their hard work and fundraising hugely appreciated by all the young people who benefited. May 2006: Teneshia Aquhaar, a young woman supported by Centrepoint was voted 1st place in a CRASH (Construction and Property Industry Charity for the Homeless) exhibition of photographs taken by homeless and formerly homeless people. The award winning picture was taken outside the Theatre Royal, Stratford, East London with this year’s theme based on ‘anniversary’ to coincide with CRASH’s 15th anniversary. We held a seminar in Bristol with Dawn Primarolo MP, Paymaster General as keynote speaker, to raise the profile of issues affecting young people in the South West of England. The seminar generated discussion about how best to tackle the underlying problems and highlighted the solutions.
Annual review 2006/07
July 2006: At the beginning of July we were working with 763 young homeless people in our residential and support services. Dwayne Joseph, a Centrepoint service user and trainee chef graduated from Jamie Oliver’s restaurant Fifteen. The training involved working on a different section every week and Dwayne went on to secure a full time job as a commie chef at the Four Seasons Hotel.
July
“Centrepoint helped me get onto the Fifteen course. Before I joined I couldn’t even cook” Dwayne Joseph August 2006: ‘Healthy Futures’, a healthy living guide for young people, was launched to coincide with Sexual Health Week. The guide included a ten step plan for healthy living, tips on nutrition, the benefits of exercise, the adverse effects of drugs and excessive alcohol use and a comprehensive range of information on sexual health.
September
September 2006: On Wednesday 27th September at the Labour Party Conference Yvette Cooper MP, Minister for Housing and Planning, led a round table discussion for Centrepoint with selected participants from the public, private and voluntary sector including Andy Love MP, Co-Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Homelessness and Housing Need. The theme was ‘From House to Home’, with a briefing paper on what ‘home’ means to young people. The group debated the need for housing to be placed higher on the agenda for Children and Young People’s Trusts and were unanimous in the belief that homelessness is not simply about housing but about being without a home that is secure, safe, decent and affordable to live in. A discussion was held around the discrepancy with the single room rent allowance and although the event went a long way in strengthening parliamentary relationships Centrepoint still continues to lobby against single room rent restrictions.
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A year in action (continued) November
December
October 2006: At the beginning of October we were working with 782 homeless young people in our residential and support services.
anniversary of the film Cathy Come Home. The season encouraged the public to help a homeless person through skill sharing and a broad variety of volunteering opportunities, ranging from IT skills through to bike maintenance.
We marked the start of Care Leavers week with a reception celebrating the achievements of young care leavers. The event took place at HSBC private banking offices in St James and Lemn Sissay, poet and famed care leaver was invited to speak. He commented: “I was in care from 0 to 17 and there’s not a day I don’t wake up knowing it. You don’t realise how important a family is unless you don’t have one”. The reception also coincided with the launch of the Government’s Green Paper called ‘Care Matters’ which focussed on improving the life chances of young people in, and leaving, the care system. November 2006: Pat McFadden MP opened Centrepoint’s first ‘information technology’ enabled service at Salters’ City Foyer. All 44 bedrooms now have broadband access, terminals and a range of software packages available to help with education, training, employment and life skills development. Centrepoint was pleased to support the BBC’s homelessness season, starting with the 40th
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The Government announced that the practice of using inappropriate and unsupported bed and breakfast accommodation for 16 and 17 year olds would be stopped by 2010. This is a successful outcome of our rigorous lobbying of Government in the last few years to abolish the practice. Centrepoint is now co-leading a new scheme of work launched by the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) to improve action to prevent 16 and 17 year olds going into unsuitable bed and breakfast temporary accommodation. This work will also increase Centrepoint’s presence with a wide range of local authorities. December 2006: The Paul O’Grady show completed a stunning makeover of the main lounge area and cookery life skills room at Centrepoint Camberwell Foyer to provide a more comfortable, colourful and stylish warm area to be used by the 80 young people currently residing there.
January
March
Centrepoint launched its annual ‘Countdown to Christmas’ appeal with the objective of raising the £252,900 necessary to support young people to sleep securely in services over the Christmas period.
We began working with the Department for Communities and Local Government to deliver two key elements of their National Youth Homelessness Scheme – a knowledge base of effective practice in preventing and tackling youth homelessness primarily for local authorities’ use and a communications programme to facilitate regional and inter-disciplinary learning.
January 2007: At the beginning of January we were working with 754 homeless young people in our residential and support services. Centrepoint announced that the Hampton Court Flower Show would be featuring a new garden created exclusively for them by gold medal winning designer Claire Whitehouse. Inspired by the wishes, needs and creativity of Centrepoint’s young people, the garden will be used to highlight the exciting new Horticultural Trainee Scheme. February 2007: In February we celebrated the success of our Assessment and Qualifications Alliance Awards programme with an award ceremony held in Cheney School, Headington. The scheme provides young people with formal recognition for their achievements in a vast range of areas and young people from Oxford completed units on budgeting, household skills, personal challenge and group work.
March 2007: Housing Minister Yvette Cooper launched the £4 million Foundations for Life programme. This was an initiative bringing together Centrepoint’s award winning experience of developing life-changing services for homeless young people with the property industry’s capacity, through LandAid, to provide key practical contributions. This includes the upgrade or provision of suitable facilities to develop young people’s skills for life, work and study and for the staff to deliver skill development programmes.
Annual review 2006/07
Photo: Claudia Janke
“ The transferable skills and the qualification that the course provides will give me a great foundation for the future – once I finish the course I will feel like I can overcome any difficulties and pursue new challenges.”
Jean Pierre’s Story
Jean Pierre lived in the UK with his mother and his stepfather and experienced extreme stress and depression due to the interaction he had within his family. His self esteem was undermined by his home life, and he was constantly made to feel ‘no good.’
Eventually, Jean Pierre felt that for the good of himself, his mental stability and his family he should leave home. He put his possessions into storage and slept on the streets keeping his books with him. Jean Pierre has a positive outlook on life and never felt that he would be on the streets for ever. He stayed away from drugs, alcohol and smoking. Eventually Jean Pierre came to Centrepoint’s Safe Stop, an emergency service for homeless young people and from there he has lived in various Centrepoint services and currently resides at Centrepoint Bruce House. Jean Pierre had dreamt of being an organic gardener and started an HND at Enfield College which he was unable to complete due to issues with his family and finances. He explains that he enrolled on the Capel Manor course because he wished to pick up where he left off. Jean Pierre has thrown himself into the Capel Manor course and it has really helped him focus on what he wants from life and face his past failures.
Jean Pierre feels that Centrepoint have helped him prepare for life and appreciates the support that the learning and health teams have given him. He now aims to get his A levels and go to University at the London School of Economics to study Politics.
He feels that Centrepoint have helped him prepare for life and appreciates the support that the learning and health teams have given him. He feels that they have raised his once diminished expectations of life through the right advice and direction. Jean Pierre now aims to get his A levels and go to University at the London School of Economics to study Politics.
Annual review 2006/07
Centrepoint overview
Centrepoint, together with its subsidiary organisation, Stopover, is the leading national charity working to improve the lives of socially excluded homeless young people. Centrepoint believes that dealing with the social exclusion of young people requires an integrated response starting with a safe home and then building on this to create firm foundations for the future.
Our immediate mission is to be the national beacon of excellence in preventing and tackling youth homelessness, the leading charity working to end youth homelessness with local services and national influence as well as a successful charity enterprise. We focus particularly on those young people who are vulnerable and at risk of homelessness, especially 16-21 year olds.
In our direct work the Centrepoint group provides a range of accommodation based services, including emergency night shelters, short stay hostels, and specialist projects for care leavers. Services are also provided for ex-offenders, young single parents, foyers and supported flats and floating support services.
Our work is carried out through a unique combination of national work that is underpinned by local provision. In local communities we create direct services, support other local providers and local authorities to develop and deliver services in line with best practice.
These accommodation services provide the foundations from which young people can start tackling issues that lead to them becoming homeless, and developing the skills they need for a sustainable future.
Nationally we learn from the experience of the young people who use our services and those of our partners, in order to focus action at all levels to mobilise support and supporters and to influence public policy and understanding of the issues involved.
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As part of our direct work, we work with young people on their personal, social, educational and vocational development. To this end, we offer employment, training, education and specialist support for young people with mental health, drug and alcohol issues at different London based and nationwide services.
All our direct work is underpinned by our award winning ‘support and development’ approach together with evaluation and research to improve the lives of young people. This approach enables us to respond to young people as individuals and focus on five particular spheres of their lives: housing, learning, finance, health and engagement with the community.
Our policy work is rooted in the experiences of the young people who use our services. We are committed to ensuring the views and needs of young people are central to any recommendations we make both for our own services and to government.
A significant part of Centrepoint’s work is to shape, influence and advance policy on homelessness, with particular reference to tackling and preventing youth homelessness. Our policy and influencing work has two objectives: • to increase the public understanding of the causes and effects of youth homelessness • to push for practical changes in policies which would reduce homelessness and enhance the life chances of the young people who use our services To achieve these objectives we conduct research, examine policies and offer solutions.
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Facts and figures
In 2006/07 Centrepoint worked directly with 1816 young people in our accommodation related services – an increase over the 1553 young people that we worked with last year.
By year end 98% (95% in 2005/06) of all young people in Centrepoint services had a current ‘support and development’ plan and risk assessment. Within Stopover 90% of all young people have a support and development plan. These are also now being reviewed and updated monthly, which is a new, more intensive approach applying across all Centrepoint services (other than short stay services which have their own more regular reviews). During the year we supported 226 young people to start training or education and 129 people to gain employment. At the end of the year over 56% of young people using Centrepoint’s services were in education, training or work whereas on arrival this figure stood at 19%. We continued to work with young people, 75% of whom are under 21 (83% of young people at Stopover are under 21), with a wide range of vulnerabilities: 49% were known to have slept rough at some point before arriving at Centrepoint.
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74% of young people leaving Centrepoint went on to more appropriate accommodation, including those helped to move into the private rented sector through our rent deposit guarantee scheme. 81% of young people leaving Stopover went on to secure suitable accommodation. 84% of young people responded to our annual satisfaction survey compared to 64% last year. Of the 84% of young people who responded, 85% were satisfied or very satisfied with Centrepoint services.
Of the 84% of young people who responded to our annual satisfaction survey, 85% were satisfied or very satisfied with Centrepoint services. What age are the young people that we help? 2005/6 2006/7
40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0
16 – 17
18 – 19
20 – 21
22 – 23
24 – 25
Over 25
Age in years
How many people do we help? The number of young people we have helped over the last five years has almost doubled.
2002 – 03 909 2003 – 04 2004 – 05 2005 – 06
1452 1485 1553
2006 – 07 1816
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Homelessness – the big picture
Homelessness can happen to anyone. Problems such as debt, the breakdown of a relationship, sexual abuse and domestic violence can all lead to someone having to leave home.
When an individual is homeless they are without the security of a stable and suitable environment – this can prevent them from fully engaging in education, training or employment. This in turn means that potentially they are also at risk of experiencing other problems including isolation and social exclusion, which can trigger poor mental and physical health.
We conducted a joint study (funded by the Big Lottery Fund) with the London Metropolitan University aimed to get an improved understanding of youth homelessness by considering methods of early intervention. As part of this the project we undertook group and individual interviews with young people and parents in order to gain knowledge of their:
People can be regarded as homeless if: • They have nowhere to live • They are based in temporary accommodation such as a hostel, bed and breakfast, hotel or squat • They cannot stay in their home because of violence or threats of violence • They are staying temporarily with friends or relatives who are unable or unwilling to accommodate them longer term • They have somewhere to live but it is not reasonable to expect them to stay there, i.e. very poor conditions or overcrowding
• Perceptions and experiences in relation to home • Attitudes to homelessness, leaving home, running away and staying away • Views on preventing runaway behaviour
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Recommendations from the research show that young people need practical information about leaving home including an understanding of the costs involved, average cost of accommodation and average wages. It also suggested expansion of school anti bullying campaigns, a website for advice on experiencing problems at home and leaving home and funding for work with young
runaways and those at risk of homelessness. However, we do need an accurate picture of the scale and nature of how many young people are homeless in the UK. Earlier in the year we announced that we would be working with the University of York’s Centre for Housing Policy to review the progress made over the past 10 years in addressing youth homelessness in the UK. The last major review was in 1995 when the Inquiry into Preventing Youth Homelessness estimated that 246,000 young people had experienced homelessness. The study is funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and has the support of other key organisations such as Crisis and Barnardo’s. In addition to the ‘official’ picture, many young people experience homelessness each year without having any contact with local authorities. These ‘hidden’ homeless young people include those who stay with friends, or those who live in squats or hostels.
The research will be published later this year and will look at local and national patterns of youth homelessness and the nature and profile of the current young homeless population. It will also cover the impact that policy, local homelessness strategies and preventative interventions have had on outcomes of homeless young people and those at risk of homelessness.
A major review is needed to gain an accurate picture of the scale and nature of how many young people are homeless in the UK.
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More than just housing
Our award winning support and development approach helps young people to create positive relationships, expand their social and life skills and gain education and training. On arrival at Centrepoint each young person is helped to develop a plan that covers all aspects of their life, which helps them make a successful transition into independent adulthood.
The support and development approach is all about the young people. It puts them at the centre of any decisions which affect their life no matter how big or small and it encourages them to take responsibility for their decisions, to learn from successes (and mistakes) and to put what has been learned into practice. Young people, supported by Centrepoint support and development workers, assess and record their own achievements using interactive tools including a ‘life web’ and ‘development wheel’. This makes their progress more visible, allowing them to recognise their strengths and weaknesses and plan their development activities accordingly. The interactive tools include: • Risk assessments – these help the young person identify what is stopping them achieving their goals • Support and development plans – these help the young person plan, review and organise the changes they want to make in their life
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• A life web and development wheel which help the young person to focus on the areas of their life they want to change and recognise skills they already have In December 2005 Centrepoint won the influential Andy Ludlow Award for best practice in homelessness services for the support and development approach and we have just finished the third review of this as part of our commitment to continuous improvement. Recommendations from young people and staff informed the changes which included language format, content and a new learning and health needs assessment. This year young people achieved 202 accredited outcomes through our two awarding bodies: the Open College Network (OCN) and the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance (AQA).
In addition, young people have been involved in a wide range of activities that have been designed to demonstrate the skills they have developed. This developing portfolio draws young people back into a learning environment and helps them to recognise skills they have. This has led to an increase in motivation and confidence, reflected in the numbers of young people participating in education and training, and ultimately gaining employment. The London Mayor’s Housing Strategy This year, Centrepoint welcomed the London Mayor’s acknowledgement of the crucial role housing plays and commitment to increase the supply of affordable housing. Our response to this proposal emphasised that having an affordable place to live and somewhere you see as a home is a crucial determinant of success in later life. At Centrepoint we believe that prevention of homelessness is a vital part and major objective of any strategy for addressing the problem of homelessness. Prevention includes reducing statutory homelessness and stopping repeat homelessness but it is also about stopping homelessness from occurring in the first place and providing support to those vulnerable to the risk factors associated with homelessness. There are many possible strands to preventing youth homelessness such as mediation, housing advice, temporary respite accommodation, rent deposit schemes and tenancy support schemes. All local authorities under the Homelessness
Act 2002 are obliged to draw up homelessness strategies for their areas. The Mayor’s housing strategy should be using best practice from all London local authority strategies and encouraging all boroughs to strive to prevent homelessness. This strategy will be available in September 2007 and Centrepoint will be paying particular attention to its impact on young homeless people. Bed and breakfast campaign Although local authorities must now consider homeless 16 and 17 year olds as a priority for re-housing, an acute lack of social housing means that many are placed in unfit and unsafe bed and breakfast accommodation while they wait for a more permanent home. Housing 16 and 17 year olds in B&B accommodation, often in intimidating environments with poor living conditions, makes accessing healthcare services difficult and continuing in education impossible. We recently welcomed the government announcement that by 2010 no 16 or 17 year olds would be placed in bed & breakfast accommodation unless in an emergency. Centrepoint has long campaigned to end the use of B&Bs for 16 and 17 year olds as we believe it is totally unacceptable that vulnerable young people are placed in unsupported and unsuitable accommodation. Although we are still working to improve this we believe that this is partly due to our rigorous lobbying of Government on the matter.
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Matthew’s story 18 Annual review 2006/07
Photo: Claudia Janke
“ Centrepoint are great, they help as much as they can. Centrepoint needs more help, the staff need more help, so that they can help us even more, and do better than they already do.”
Matthew’s father died when he was just three. This early loss meant that he has very few memories of his dad. “I don’t really remember him that much, and as time goes on I remember less.” The loss of his mother to cancer just months after his 19th birthday was devastating and hit Matthew hard, “I was really close to her and I really miss her.” He had such a hard time coping with her death that he became deeply depressed. He couldn’t keep his promising sales and marketing job and he realised he couldn’t cope as his life seemed to spiral out of control. In his hometown, Matthew went from house to house “I moved between mates; kipping on sofas. Being around my friends in my area didn’t help, so I moved to London to try and escape.” His decision to leave meant that he was leaving his brothers behind. But he admits that his mental state was no longer the same; “I became badly depressed and suffered real bad. I moved to London to get away but I got worse.”
Matthew continued to make steady progress and soon he came off his medication. Matthew admits, “People were scared that I would get bad again but I was determined.” He remained positive; “My life had started over again, I felt like I was back on track. To me stopping medication was a mind over matter thing.” Matthew has fully embraced the services available to him at Centrepoint. He has taken part in classes to help himself towards a better future, “I was awarded a bursary which I used to complete driving lessons and my theory test. It has really helped to build my confidence and I’m looking to new things.”
With nobody to turn to, Matthew spent months sleeping rough on the streets. He recalls “I never really felt in danger, even though it was really rough. I just didn’t feel fear. I felt anxious mainly about my life. I thought about what I wanted to do and how I was going to get there.” By the time Matthew was told about Centrepoint, he was severely depressed and had attempted to take his own life. This made him realize how ill he was and Centrepoint arranged for him to start working with a psychiatrist. “At that point something changed in me. I’d had psychologists in the past, but now working with my psychiatrist through Centrepoint everything seemed clear.”
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Mental health
A recent study by Centrepoint and the Mental Health Foundation looked at homelessness and mental health among 16 to 25 year olds across London. The study explored how organisations such as housing, mental health and outreach services respond to the needs of young homeless people with mental and emotional health needs. It aimed to capture young people’s experiences of service provision.
The move from childhood to adulthood is a key developmental stage both physically and emotionally. For some young people it is also a time when mental health problems first begin to emerge. However it is during this period that services can also be the most inaccessible for a young person in need of support. The handover from children’s to adult’s services does not always go smoothly and there is a wide gap in the provision of tailored support designed to meet the particular needs of these young people. Young people can become homeless through a number of different circumstances, e.g. during the transition from care to independent living. Yet many homeless young people do not receive the support they need to help them cope with this transition. Demand both for housing and mental health support outweighs supply. This has significant implications for young people, both in terms of addressing their immediate needs and for their future lives.
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Centrepoint has a dedicated mental health team (funded by the Department for Communities and Local Government) staffed by trained and accredited psychotherapists and psychologists who are familiar with a range of treatment models. In this team most of the referrals are of young people with a history of homelessness due to severe abuse during childhood, as well as refugees with a history of trauma, loneliness and isolation. Homeless young people who have a childhood history of rejection and emotional deprivation are at risk of developing low self esteem which can lead to depression and anxiety. Young people can be suspicious of the ‘adult world’ and may develop different sorts of ‘coping strategies’ (substance misuse, anger, avoidance) some of which can create a set of other difficulties for them in the long term, including serious mental illness.
Photo: Claudia Janke
Research by Centrepoint and the Mental Health Foundation suggested that there is an increasing proportion of young people who are both homeless and experience mental health problems.
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Healthy futures
Over the last year Centrepoint has continued to successfully run the Healthy Futures project. This project has enabled us to try different methods of engaging young people in healthy living activities as well as ways to encourage them to take responsibility for their own health and wellbeing.
When faced with homelessness, it is understandable why young people overlook their health and this year the Healthy Futures project has given young people an opportunity to recognise the importance of it. Centrepoint has a holistic view on helping young people moving on – health has a large role to play in this. The Healthy Futures project works alongside a multi-disciplinary team consisting of therapists and substance misuse workers. Young people have been accessing Healthy Futures via the Healthy Living Advisor this year for 1-2-1 advice on nutrition, sexual health and relationships; help with complying with treatment; accessing sports facilities, complimentary therapies and cooking skills; and attending AQA accredited workshops all with positive outcomes.
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Photo: Claudia Janke
This year the Healthy Futures project has given young people an opportunity to recognise the importance of their health.
Care leavers in Worcestershire
Centrepoint is undertaking ‘We care!’ a project which seeks to empower young people who are experiencing and who have experienced mental health problems to explore the provision of mental health support in a young person’s transitional period.
Over two years we are aiming to recruit 15–20 young people living in Worcestershire, who are from care experienced backgrounds and who have experienced mental health problems, to become youth educators. Following training the youth educators will lead five sub groups of young people who will explore themes related to mental health that they believe are important to young people in and leaving care. The groups in care will be drawn from Worcestershire Social Services and the groups who have recently left care will be drawn from Centrepoint services in Durham and London. Each group will make recommendations that will be presented to practitioners and decision makers to highlight how the mental health needs of care experienced young people can best be met and negotiate possible changes in service delivery.
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“I’m really grateful to be given this great opportunity by Centrepoint to help make a difference to other young people’s lives. In this project I have learnt so much and had some fantastic experiences.” Tara
Photo: Claudia Janke Annual review 2006/07 25
Photo: Claudia Janke
Single room rent restriction
Young people aged under 25 have long faced discrimination in the benefits system. Whilst claimants aged 25 and over are assumed to need £57.45 per week to cover day to day living costs such as food, fuel and clothing, under 25s are entitled to only £45.50.
Young people are also excluded from the working tax credit and this discrimination is compounded for single under 25s renting in the private sector, by restricting their housing benefit to the average local rent for shared accommodation – known as the single room rent. Many tenants face shortfalls between their housing benefit entitlement and their rent due to the rent restriction rules. However as a result of the single room rent rule, young people fare much worse than their older peers. Research has shown that 87% of all single rent room claimants faced a shortfall, averaging £35.14 per week. This is over double the amount of the shortfall faced by other claimants. Such shortfalls are clearly not sustainable by under 25s, already struggling to make ends meet on the lower allowance for basic needs of £45.50.
We find that the single room rent restrictions can be a disincentive for young people to leave supported accommodation, as they know they will face a shortfall. In other cases the single room rent restriction can force vulnerable homeless young people into unsuitable sharing arrangements with other young vulnerable people, thus setting up their tenancies to fail. This system can lead directly to repeat homelessness. It is therefore essential that the Welfare Reform Bill is amended to abolish the single room rent restriction for under 25s in the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) and Centrepoint continues to lobby strongly on this issue.
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Samia came to Centrepoint Buffy House aged just 17. Exactly one year later, with both the support of staff at Centrepoint and her own determination, Samia was offered her own flat in Shepherds Bush. She was ready to enter a new phase of independence.
During her year at Centrepoint Buffy House, Samia had set goals for education including studying and undertaking a BTEC National Diploma course in Music Practice. She also worked to resolve issues with her family, in particular her step-mother, and she also met with her father, who had flown in from New York to meet with her and to reconcile with the hope that some day she would be able to visit him. Despite her troubled background, Samia is a polite, mature young lady with a positive outlook on life and with clear ambitions and hopes. The first time she walked into Centrepoint Buffy House, Samia described herself as “quiet and extremely shy.” Today she says that she is different: “I’m now positive and confident.” Over the year Samia spent at Centrepoint, she worked hard to make her room a space that she loved and was proud to call her own. She openly welcomes her independence but commends Centrepoint Buffy House for the fact that it was as normal as a home could be; ”Lots of people I know have stayed in places where it’s been really bad. At Centrepoint there were rules but no strict curfews, we could have family and friends over, as long as we gave notice and we let staff know.” Samia pinpoints one key aspect of Centrepoint Buffy House that she especially liked “Unlike other places, we were trusted, treated equally and I had positive relationships with almost everyone.” In addition to establishing a home for herself, Samia has also studied a BTEC Diploma course in Music Practice. In September 2008, she will 28 Annual review 2006/07
be going to university to start a degree in Music Media Management. “I was offered places at my top three choices; it’s most likely that I will attend Goldsmith College, University College of London.” In the mean time Samia has successfully secured a one year internship at Universal Records, where she will gain invaluable experience in music management and ‘scouting’ talent. Not only has Samia been making inroads in education but also in her personal relationships. She has continued to rebuild relations with her step-mother and she has planned trips with her older brother to continue to visit and spend time with him and the rest of the family in Kent. In addition, her father has returned from New York to visit her again “I still have not been there but I hope to go soon.” Samia is clear as to why people should support Centrepoint. “Centrepoint helps young people with different experiences and backgrounds. It is supportive. Here they do more than their jobs. They care more than usual.” Samia is happy of her achievements to date; she has her own place and is responsible, “I am happy. Everything is going well, I cannot complain. Besides I have my dog Kai for company. In the past I had to look after my younger brothers so looking after him is easy!” Looking back over the last two years, Samia has a final piece of advice for young homeless people, “Do not be afraid to look forward or to go forward. Always make an effort.”
Photo: Claudia Janke
Photo: Claudia Janke
Samia’s story
“ I am happy. Everything is going well, I cannot complain. Besides I have my dog Kai for company. In the past I had to look after my younger brothers so looking after him is easy!”
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Learning and work
Many homeless young people can and want to work, yet the benefit system prevents them from taking up employment. Some young people studying on a part time basis are forced to leave college in order to seek work, and others are placed on courses that fail to match their development needs. These are just two of the barriers homeless young people face on the road to independent living.
Our aim is to equip young people with the skills needed, whether they are social, financial or learning. Over half of Centrepoint’s young people have experienced some form of local authority care during their lives and may encounter specific personal, emotional or financial challenges as a result. An obvious barrier to independent living is debt – homeless young people find it difficult enough to eat healthily, buy toiletries and books for college on state benefits. Added to the pressures of teenage years, being targeted by finance companies, a social life and keeping up with the latest fashions and debt becomes a likely consequence of homeless life. New deal for welfare Centrepoint welcomed the Green Paper ‘New deal for welfare: Empowering people to work’ which emphasised increasing support for people to enter employment. Young people who lack skills, qualifications and work experience can
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often only find employment that is temporary and low paid. Labour market conditions mean that young people sometimes see entering employment and moving off benefits as risky. It is important that moving into work gives scope for young people to test and fail without hugely disadvantaging themselves. Moreover, homeless young people need financial support to participate in further and higher education. Centrepoint’s experience has found that homeless young people are most likely to be able to turn their lives around when intensive, individual support is available where they are living. Engaging with young people through activities builds up relationships and helps identify barriers to work which can be addressed through developing an action plan. Significant work is often needed to raise young people’s expectations of their abilities, whilst helping them look long term and be realistic about their expectations of work. Support needs to continue for homeless young people when they first enter
employment. For some people this could include liaising between a young person and their employer to help sort out problems. A recent evaluation of a Centrepoint employment support pilot has shown the value of a dedicated Employment Support Worker (ESW). Lack of qualifications and work history were seen as the most common barriers from the young people involved. Although many of the young people had experienced support from other sources, including Jobcentre Plus, New Deal and Connexions, nearly all of the young people felt that the support they had received from the ESWs was better. They identified that this was because the ESW support was more regular and as a result could be better tailored to a young person’s needs. They felt that the ESWs have motivated them to pursue options that they would not otherwise have considered and provided them with information that they would not have been able to access on their own. Few of the young people were in a position to enter employment quickly with only 6% of young people achieving a sustained employment outcome; more young people achieved education outcomes – an important achievement for those without qualifications.
Nearly all of these young people secured qualifications, including A levels and level 2 NVQs and they indicated that they planned to undertake further learning in the near future. The young people felt that the dedicated support they had received had helped them achieve their qualifications. Further education: Raising skills, improving life chances This year, Centrepoint also welcomed proposals to introduce an entitlement to a first Level 3 qualification free of charge to learners aged 19 to 25. “I hate claiming – it makes me feel incompetent.” Young man living in a Centrepoint foyer who has had seven job interviews in the past three months and no feedback. A Centrepoint report “No home, no job: bringing down the barriers to work for homeless young people” found that contrary to media images, young people are not work shy but struggle to overcome many barriers as they try to move into work. Young people want to work and see employment and a career as a key aspect of adult status. Around 67% of the young people interviewed said that the training opportunities within jobs were very or fairly important. Being in employment increases their self worth by helping them develop skills, stops their reliance on state benefits and improves their social networks.
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Learning and work (continued)
Young homeless people often need to gain basic skills before considering further education. For example at Centrepoint over a quarter of young people living in our services have no qualifications. In addition a notable minority have problems with reading (15%) and writing English (29%).
We also further developed youth participation especially in the context of volunteering and apprenticeships. In general, each of our services once again reviewed and continued to develop their local participation strategies, agreeing those with young people who were then able to act as youth educators, delivering homelessness and leaving home education to more than 300 other young people. Furthermore we started to develop a range of apprenticeship opportunities for young people. In particular we began a partnership with Capel Manor College, through which we have designed and delivered a pilot course that allows Centrepoint’s young people to gain NVQ Level 1 in Horticulture in a 10 week part time course.
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As part of this we began preparing for the Hampton Court Flower Show which will feature a new garden created exclusively for Centrepoint by gold medal designer Claire Whitehouse. The garden will highlight the Horticultural Trainee Scheme and be a vehicle for the apprentices to showcase their talents. Several young people are keen to develop future careers in the field of horticulture and a further group of trainees is currently on the second course.
Photo: Claudia Janke
Moving on
Young people can find living on their own difficult for a number of reasons, especially if they have never done it before. We help them gain the practical, personal and social skills needed for successful independent living.
Centrepoint helps young people maintain their tenancies and claim benefits, and advises on ways to get into learning and work. We also help young people search for suitable accommodation, and even help with the deposit which is paid back in easily manageable installments. A number of young people who have the skills required for independent living are reluctant to leave our services. There is a risk of creating a dependency culture and also a barrier to new young people in need of support. There are various reasons for this situation. Young people may have unrealistic expectations about the type of accommodation they can move to. Some assume – wrongly – that they can automatically move into a council flat after leaving Centrepoint. Others may be confused about the options available to them or become dependent on our services and so lack the impetus to move out. Our staff have a key
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role to encourage young people to look for alternative accommodation and consider all their moving on options. As a solution, young people need information about their housing options as soon as they come to Centrepoint. From the outset we are explicit about ‘the deal’ they are making with us when they move in. As part of that deal they are committing to engage with learning and development, paying their rent and making preparations for moving on within a limited time frame. Information about moving on is incorporated into support and development sessions and workshops. We have also provided leaflets for young people with advice about private rented housing. This year 74% of young people leaving Centrepoint and 81% of young people leaving Stopover made a positive move – meaning that they had found a new home and were looking forward to a brighter future.
Photo: Claudia Janke
Photo: Claudia Janke 36 Annual review 2006/07
Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme
Landlords favour those who work and are in employment, which means that the most vulnerable members of society have the hardest problems accessing accommodation. This year Centrepoint celebrated the success of its pilot Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme in the North East.
This innovative scheme gave young people access to the private rented sector that was not previously available. Without this vital support the young people would remain homeless and unable to move forward in their lives. The Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme is funded by the HBOS Foundation and offers landlords a guarantee to cover the deposit needed for an initial tenancy. During this time we work with young people to help them save towards their own deposit and understand issues around budgeting, managing money and living independently. This scheme bridges the gap and Centrepoint is therefore able to continue to support those who are most in need of our help.
“Centrepoint made me feel more independent than I ever thought I was� Nicola
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Tia first came to Centrepoint when she was 19 and has lived at Centrepoint for over a year. She recalls that although many young people are in danger, she kept out of danger by staying at a friend’s house.
The relationship between Tia and her mother went from good to bad, then bad to worse. The closer they got to one another the worse it got. “I guess that growing up can be tough, as you start to look at life more different, and my mother did not want me to grow up; that’s how our arguments started.”
Tia has actively used services; such as counselling and help in finding education, training and jobs. She has also been to money management classes that have taught her how to use her money wisely. Tia has also been swimming, on picnics and takes part in the barbecue organised every summer.
Tia’s mother started using abusive language and regularly called her names. It got worse and she started abusing her physically. “I never hit her back and kept everything inside. The only way I could release my anger and stress was to self-harm.”
Tia’s room is part of a self-contained Centrepoint flat, which means she does not have to share a bathroom or kitchen. It is decorated with pictures of friends and family, posters and a calendar. “Staff at Centrepoint agreed to paint my room the colour I wanted, which made me happy.”
Becoming homeless was a terrible thing to happen for Tia. “Not having a stable place to stay affects you quite a lot as you do not have a home to go to.”
In the future Tia wants to work and get a good job in administration. She has had experience as an administrator but in the long term would love to travel and possibly work for a travel agency or in the industry and is working towards gaining all the right qualifications. “Once I’ve moved on from Centrepoint I will hopefully work on a relationship with my mother.” Tia’s advice to other young people is “Becoming homeless is often unavoidable. If you do become homeless, get all the help that you can.”
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Tia’s story
Photo: Claudia Janke
Tia finds the staff friendly and helpful and believes that they try their best. “If there was ever anything else that they could do for me, I’m sure that they would help me.”
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Centrepoint partnering and alliances
One of Centrepoint’s key aims is to improve the effectiveness of homeless organisations across the country. We use our experience of tackling youth homelessness to support other networks and agencies (including local authorities) and providers working with and for young people.
We now support organisations based in four government regions across England – North East, Yorkshire/Humber, West Midlands and the South West. We have also modified the support and development toolkit to customise it further for other providers and we have developed the web based recording tools that will enhance its effectiveness. This year we also received new funding from the Freemasons’ Grand Charity, Big Lottery Fund and Department for Children, Schools and Families, that will enable us to support more organisations in the coming years. We also continued to support the work of the family mediation services and were able to provide continuous support in County Durham and Worcestershire. During this time, we helped 52 young people to return home, remain at home or move away from home with family support.
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Overall, more than 300 partnerships were activated across the country, ensuring that policy and provision benefited young people and that good practice is shared. Working with Oxford & Durham City Councils, we completed a research project on how best to provide affordable housing for young people. More than 50 young people were involved in this initiative and moving forwards in 2007/08 it will include young people being trained in construction industry skills and refurbishing properties in the local community in order to bring such properties back into use. In addition, by linking to the Local Area Agreement we established the County Durham Joint Protocol, a multi agency assessment and support service for homeless 16 and 17 year olds. During the year over 100 cases of homelessness amongst this age group were prevented through this intervention.
Photo: Claudia Janke
This year, we helped 52 young people to return home, remain at home or move away from home with family support.
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Financial review
Centrepoint’s ability to help homeless young people rests on our ability to remain financially stable. As always we remain grateful to every person and organisation who contributed to our funding during this year.
Our income is generated mainly from three sources: grants and contracts, rent and service charges and donations and gifts. Total income for the year was £16.2m including £2m from Stopover. Of every £1 of income raised, 91p was used directly in helping homeless young people. We strive to retain a surplus each year in order to set aside enough in reserves to keep helping young people in the event that our income suffers a temporary shortfall. Centrepoint surplus for the year was £511K, just over 3% of total income. At the end of March 2007, we had £2.1m of free general reserves. Should our income suffer significant decline this reserve will enable us to keep helping homeless young people for around two months whilst we readjust.
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Of every £1 of income raised, 91p was used directly in helping homeless young people.
Where our income came from (£16.2m) Grants and contracts £8.7m Rents and charges £4.0m Donations and gifts £3.0m Investment and other income £0.5m £16.2m
£16.2m Grants and contracts Rents and charges Donations and gifts Investment and other income
24%
54% 18%
54% 24% 18% 4%
How we used it to help young people Direct services provided by group £13.0m Raising funds and governance £1.3m Influencing public policy £0.7m supporting other providers £0.7m £15.7m
£15.7m
82%
8% Direct services provided by group Raising funds and governance Influencing public policy supporting other providers
82% 8% 5% 5%
5%
5%
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What we did in 2006/07 Centrepoint continues to enjoy the active support of HRH Prince William who as Patron has shown a deep commitment to homeless young people through personal support and fundraising activities. In December William made a private visit to Centrepoint Safe Stop to meet young people who would have been spending Christmas on the streets had it not been for our support. In addition, Centrepoint was hugely privileged and proud to be chosen as a beneficiary of the concert in our former patron’s memory – The Concert for Diana.
“Centrepoint do such an amazing job in helping to combat homelessness and social exclusion and I just wanted to lend my support to their remarkable efforts.” HRH Prince William of Wales
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Photo: Claudia Janke Annual review 2006/07 45
What we did in 2006/07 (continued) Centrepoint published a number of booklets to articulate our policy positions on youth homelessness. These included: • ‘A Place to Call Home’ focusing on the support and accommodation needs of care leavers • ‘From House to Home’ stressing the importance of young people having roots, relationships, resources and a roof in order to fulfil their potential and contribute to both their local community and wider society • ‘Working for your future’ based on extensive research in London and Newcastle concluding that young people in supported housing would benefit significantly from having dedicated employment support
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A third of the young people helped by Centrepoint are refugees and up to 74% are from BME (Black minority ethnic) backgrounds. Centrepoint has a dedicated refugee advisor who provides advice, guidance, information and direct training to staff working with refugees or asylum seekers.
This year we entered into a partnership with LandAid called ‘Foundations for Life’. The Foundations for Life programme comprises of an investment in upgrading and providing suitable rooms and facilities to develop young people’s skills for life, work and study. It also gives the capacity to deliver training programmes of life and work related skills and to support young people taking up opportunities in the property industry or moving into their own homes. LandAid will be raising a sum of £4.5m from the property industry over the next four years to support the Foundations for Life programme.
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Photo: Claudia Janke 48 Annual review 2006/07
Thank you!
We would like to thank everyone who supported Centrepoint’s work during the year, including the following generous donors: 29th May 1961 Charitable Trust • Albert Hunt Trust • Anglo American • Annabel Buckingham & Thomasina Miers • Arts Council England • BBC Children In Need • Big Lottery Fund • Bircham Dyson Bell Charitable Trust • Camelot Foundation • Charities Advisory Trust • Cheruby Trust • City Bridge Trust • City Parochial Foundation • Coalfields Regeneration Trust • Connexions • Coutts Charitable Trust • CRASH • David Finnie and Alan Emery Charitable Trust • David G Bounds • Department for Education and Skills • Department for Trade and Industry • Dulverton Trust • Eat • Electric Cabaret • Equitable Charitable Trust • Esmee Fairbairn Foundation
• Eveson Charitable Trust • Freemasons’ Grand Charity • Friends Provident Foundation • Gap • Georgina David • GMS Estates • Gwyneth Forrester Trust • HBOS Foundation • Help a London Child • Home Office • HSBC Education Trust • Inner London Magistrates’ Courts’ Poor Box Charity • Ironmongers’ Company • Jon R Aisbitt • Jonathan C Pickering • Joseph Rowntree Foundation • Lloyds TSB Foundation for England and Wales • London Housing Foundation • Ludlow Thompson • Man Group • Masterfoods UK • Michael Palin • N M Rothschild & Sons • Nic and Jill Stuchfield • Nigel G May • Northern Rock Foundation • Oak Foundation • Ofenheim Charitable Trust • Peacock Charitable Trust
• Rank Foundation • Rayne Foundation • Richard Reeve’s Foundation • Rose & Dudley Leigh • Rose Foundation • Salters’ Company • Sir Jules Thorn Charitable Trust • Skinners’ Company’s Lawrence Atwell’s Charity • Sun Microsystems UK • Talisman Charitable Trust • Tallow Chandlers’ Company • Vintners’ Company • Westminster Primary Care Trust• William Morris Agency UK • Worshipful Company of Information Technologists Centrepoint would also like to thank all of the individuals who have donated throughout the year and enabled us to continue with our work, tackling and preventing youth homelessness. Annual review 2006/07 49
Design by Nameless Credited photographs by Claudia Janke Illustration by Paul Desmond Print by Good News Press
Centrepoint Head Office Central House 25 Camperdown Street London E1 8DZ Tel 0845 466 3400 Fax 0845 466 3500 www.centrepoint.org.uk Charity Number 292411 Registered as Centrepoint Soho © Centrepoint 2007 The names of some young people have been changed to protect their privacy.
Centrepoint – Annual review 2006/07
If you would like to support Centrepoint’s work please visit our website or call the free donation line on: 0800 23 23 20