Everyone deserves a fair chance. For thousands of young people every year, Centrepoint is a safe space for young people to build an independent life.
But getting a young person experiencing homelessness into accommodation is just the first step. From there, we provide the expert support young people need to reclaim their autonomy and have a future beyond homelessness.
We provide support and advice for young people
Alongside our partners, we support almost 14,000 young people every year through a variety of services. We know every young person is different and that’s why we provide safe spaces for a variety of needs, from young parents, those leaving care and those escaping violence. These services include:
The Centrepoint Helpline
Over the last financial year, we supported 5,257 young people through our Helpline. Whether they are facing eviction, sofa surfing, sleeping rough or need emotional support, we listen to vulnerable young people and do everything we can to help ease their situation.
Accommodation
Safe and sustainable housing is the first crucial step to breaking the cycle of homelessness. Centrepoint accommodation means that residents no longer need to worry about finding a safe place to stay, and can instead concentrate on what’s important to them: their future. All our accommodation and services are Psychologically Informed Environments, meaning that we always take the psychological and emotional needs of young people into account.
Mental and physical health
Experiencing homelessness is traumatic. Our health team work with young people so they can move beyond their past. They work with them and refer them to experts in psychology, healthy relationships and substance abuse. Our HOMES engagement team facilitates creative and sports opportunities for young people to stay active and meet new people.
Financial skills
We know the benefits system is a lifeline to young people, but navigating the welfare system is far too complicated and without support from family, young people will often struggle financially. Our Moneywise team help young people understand how they can manage their money, from budgeting to bills.
Jobs and employment
Our Jobs, Education and Training team are ready to help young people move on to independence and find their passion in life. Workplace training, English and maths classes, vocational courses and digital skills qualifications are available to help young people gain those crucial qualifications and find a career they love. In 2023/24, 54% of the young people who left Centrepoint were in education, employment or training.
Legal support
For young people, knowing their rights means they can blaze their own path, equipped with the knowledge they need to self-advocate and the confidence to challenge decisions. Thanks to relationships with external partners, we can offer young people access to free legal advice on a range of issues, from employment rights and family law to immigration advice and consumer rights.
Independent living
We know that a home is more than just a room. But affordable housing is scarce, and often prevents young people from moving on a meaningful way. Our Independent Living Programme provides truly affordable housing to young people, a high-quality home for which they’ll never pay more than one-third of their monthly salary in rent.
Our policy work to fix the system
Ending youth homelessness isn’t just about supporting young people to stop homelessness in its tracks – we want to attack it at the root. When it comes to youth homelessness, the system is broken. Our Policy and Research team are working to fix it.
Centrepoint’s Policy and Research team are a key part in changing how our society views homelessness. They work to influence national and local government policy that affects young people experiencing homelessness, from housing to family to health. We want young people to get the support they need when it comes to their benefits, education and employment opportunities, so they can build an independent future.
Our research is key to understanding youth homelessness and its causes - these help us develop the policy solutions needed to bring about change. Take a look at our extensive collection of research documents to understand the work we do.
