Harry, 21, arrived in the UK after leaving Sudan as a refugee. After receiving his refugee status, he was forced to leave his hotel, meaning that he had to rough sleep. He was met and supported by the Rough Sleepers and Complex Case team who got him into emergency accommodation. He's now moved into an independent home and is studying ESOL - with dreams of becoming a web designer in the future.
Finding Centrepoint
Harry, 21, arrived in the UK in 2025 after having to leave Sudan as a refugee. When he first arrived in the UK, he was placed into a hotel whilst his refugee status was processed by the Home Office – something that can take anywhere from a few weeks to over a year.
After putting in his application, he was quickly given status, something that should be a thing to celebrate. However, due to government policies, as soon as his status came through, he was forced to leave his hotel giving him no other option but to begin to rough sleep.
“I’m now living in the private sector but before I got my refugee status, I was in a hotel, and they evicted me.”
Unable to find anywhere to stay, he began sleeping in nearby parks, something that can be hugely dangerous and put him at risk of harm. After a few weeks of moving between different bedding sites around the city, and trying to make ends meet, Harry found out about and called the Centrepoint Helpline, where he explained his situation and where he was staying.
The Manchester Rough Sleepers and Complex Case team were made aware of Harry’s living situation, and they visited him where he was currently staying during a morning outreach. When they arrived, it was clear that whilst he had been rough sleeping he had been the victim of several crimes, and an emergency referral was made to find him temporary accommodation and move him into a safe space.
He remembers meeting with Sharon and Rebecca, two rough sleeper support workers, when they first came out and all that they did to try and get him into a safe home.
“Rebecca and Sharon – they both tried so hard to help me get into the accommodation”.
Harry was soon placed into one of Centrepoint’s Rough Sleeper homes, where he was able to share his experiences with the support team and together, they could think about his next steps in the future, and what he might need to do to get there. While Harry was living in his home, his team were able to help him access the medical care he needed, and gift him some vouchers to buy a few new pieces of clothing, more suited to British weather.
Alongside this, they also helped him to enrol in college so that he can study ESOL (English for Speakers Of another Language), with a qualification and more confidence in the language helping him to move towards independence.
“They have sorted out a lot of issues for me. The first was accommodation, second my medication, the third was clothes and the 4th was helping me to get into an ESOL class. I go to college four days a week – I’m going to college in order to learn ESOL”.
Getting settled
Whilst in his supported accommodation, Harry met another young person with whom, after only living together for a few weeks, he developed a close friendship. After staying in the temporary accommodation and getting the initial support from the teams to get set up with Universal Credit and enrolled in college, they both began to feel ready to move into their own spaces.
However, the team saw the close friendship they had grown, and as they were both ready to move on, suggested that they look for flats they could move into together. After discussing this altogether, everyone agreed that this felt like the best plan for their next steps and they began to research homes in the area.
“I met him in the first accommodation and now I’ve met another person, and we have become friends. I was so happy to hear we were moving in together”.
They worked closely with Lucy, a Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme (RDGS) support worker, to sort through their options and find a home that was suitable for them. The RDGS supports young people at risk of homelessness with funding so that they can move into the private rental sector. After looking at a few different homes, they found the perfect one for them and after Lucy completed some checks to make sure that it was right, they shortly moved in. The scheme was able to help them with the deposit for the flat, meaning that some of the financial stress of moving into their first place was lifted of their shoulders.
Soon after moving in, Lucy was able to help them to find some pieces of furniture so that they could settle into their new space and have everything they needed around them to feel comfortable. After being in the house for a few weeks, Harry is really happy with his new home and relieved to have a space he can call his own.
“Lucy was able to help a lot – she sent me some furniture for my new room. I want to thank her a lot. I am very happy that everything now is in the right place. I am very happy and very proud”.
“I’m so happy in my home – I’ve had no issues at all”.
Learning English
Before arriving in the UK last year, Harry had not had much experience with speaking English and knew very few words. However, since moving here he has shown his dedication to studying and improving his language skills – not only through going to college four days a week but also taking his learning into his own hands by watching videos and making sure to continue to progress.
“Before I came here, I didn’t know any words in English. Now, I think in my opinion, I have lifted up my level and I am able to understand and speak some more words – I am always improving and progressing”.
“In my free time, I am usually watching YouTube or on the internet to help me self-study English”.
Moving forwards
Once Harry finishes his ESOL qualifications, he knows exactly what he wants to do in the future. When he was living in Sudan, he had some experience of working as a web designer, which is something he knows he wants to focus his attention on and get more opportunities to develop. He’s interested in any area of web design and development – excited about what the different areas he could be involved in might be.
“I want to be a website designer. When I was in Sudan, I was practising this because I was interested in this field. I’m interested in working on websites for applications, games and everything!”
Once he’s settled a bit more and developed his English language skills, he is looking to begin working with the Jobs and Education team, to see what opportunities might be open to him and what he can do to reach his goals.
Reflecting on his experience
Harry’s journey to the UK was an emotionally and physically challenging experience and after arriving to what he thought would be a place of safety then being evicted from his hotel and forced into rough sleeping left him at serious risk of harm. Having the help, support and guidance of the Rough Sleepers and Complex Case Team has been a vital lifeline for him and he’s now feeling positive and excited for the future.
“I feel great – I don’t know how to say thank you for all of the help they’ve given me. I’m very happy with the support they have provided me”.
When thinking about if he had any advice for young people who might have experiences like his, he felt that he still needed more time to reflect and learn from his journey before he could share with others. But as soon as he has something he feels able and comfortable to share with others, he knows he wants to reach out and support others with a similar lived experience.
“I need some time to give advice to other young people. I haven’t worked it all out – but then I would be able to reach out to young people with all of my experience”.
We’re so happy that Harry has a new home to call his own and is taking the steps he wants towards his future – we can’t want to see what he does in the world of web design in the future.
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