50 MPs and the Minister for Homelessness come to support our call for a #YouthHomelessChapter

The #PlanForThe136k has spent the past year campaigning for a strategy to end youth homelessness. When Labour made a manifesto commitment to a strategy to end homelessness and then went on to win the election, we were excited but our question remained; will young people’s homelessness be recognised and prioritised?

On a cold but sunny Tuesday in November, representatives from YMCA, Centrepoint & New Horizon Youth Centre headed into Parliament to call on the Government to have a #YouthHomelessChapter in their strategy to end homelessness.

We were delighted that 50 MPs attended, way above what we were expecting. We were beyond excited when we also had a surprise visit from the Minister for Homelessness, Rushanara Ali MP! Campaign representatives spoke to all attendees about youth homelessness being a specific issue, with specific solutions, that needs to be prioritised within the new Government’s plans

We asked the MPs and Minister to recognise that young people are a key demographic within those forced into homelessness. Under 25s are fastest growing age group with no other option than sleeping rough in London (33% increase from 22-23). Hundreds of thousands of young people approach their council as homeless every year, and it seems to be growing.

These numbers are hard to hear but there is positive news, we know how to solve this, we do it every day in the 140+ incredible charities who make up the #PlanForThe136k collective. In Parliament we were offering to be a constructive partner in tackling this crisis and ending youth homelessness for good. The #YouthHomelessChapter we are calling for can be developed in partnership with the sector, based on our evidence, insight and experience.

We asked MPs to:

• Raise this issue formally in Parliament

• Contact the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Homelessness to request that they include a #YouthHomelessChapter in the Government’s cross-departmental strategy to end homelessness.

We will be continuing to fight for a #YouthHomelessChapter, the perfect vehicle to deliver a #PlanForThe136k. You can learn more about the collective on this website and if you’d like to get involved you can get in contact below.