Youth Homelessness
The reasons that youth become homeless are different than those of adults, and therefore, the solutions also need to be different in order to meet youth’s needs.
Framed by the voice of youth, with input from front-line service providers, funders, and community members, a Community Plan to End Youth Homelessness in Kingston and Area was developed.
Agencies and programs continue to work together to end youth homelessness.
Autumn's Story
I have been without a home since I was 16, I’m 20 now. I was sexually and physically abused by both parents since I was young. I finally gave up one night and started talking back so they kicked me out that night. Somebody told me there was a youth shelter in Kingston so the next morning I bought a train ticket and decided to check it out.
There I finished high school, and they told me about RISE. Where I am now, you get support, but you also get to live on your own and see what it’s like. It’s safe. I want to get my own apartment someday. I just finished a placement to get ready for job interviews. I’m planning to go to university.
Youth homelessness is a problem in Kingston. Not everybody notices how hard it is to be homeless. Many youth don’t yet know how to act like adults or how they should be treated. I’ve learned that it’s a bad day, not a bad life.
You can make the changes you want to make if you focus on them. When you decide you’re ready, there are people who want to help
Plan to End Youth Homelessness
A Vision for Tomorrow:
On any given night, more than 6,000 Canadian youth are homeless. Young people account for one in five of the people living in Canada’s homeless shelters. In 2013, this number was even higher in Kingston at one in three.
In five years, that figure returned to the national average in Kingston, thanks to a collective effort by the community. We have seen a dramatic drop in the number of youth who are homeless on the streets of downtown Kingston and more in programs and housing, transitional or permanent. We have prevention programs that divert youth away from shelters and back to their families or allow them to be housed safely.
In 2013, our mission began with the vision of reducing the number of young people using the shelter system. However, as the consultation process gained momentum, it became clear that the root causes of homelessness are complex and require intervention on multiple fronts. And that having more youth inside our support system was a good thing.
The United Way opted to focus on prevention, providing timely intervention, and building a sustainable network of supportive resources. This approach has ensured that youth homelessness in our community becomes a treatable option, rather than a chronic one. To learn more read the resources and reports below.
of the homeless population using shelters are unattached youth
Canadians experience homelessness annually
6,000 Canadian youth are homeless on any given night
youth accessed housing supports and counselling
How We Help
Working closely with a steering committee and a youth committee, United Way of KFLA has been providing backbone coordination on a Youth Collective Impact initiative, Ending Youth Homelessness in Kingston and Area.
In 2014 a Community Plan to End Youth Homelessness in Kingston and Area was released. This plan was framed by the voice of local youth, with input from front-line service providers, funders, community members, youth. The Action Plan is included below and includes strategies with clear goals, objectives, implementation steps and timelines. An update has been added, which includes implementation, a theory of change, management and governance and a creative campaign to increase awareness about the issue. For more information, please contact us at youth@unitedwaykfla.ca or call us at 613-542-2674.
