Using peer research to campaign for change
Eurydice Belezika, Peer Research Coordinator and former Centrepoint resident in London, talks about her experience of conducting research and campaigning to support disadvantaged young people.
Our blog is a safe space where we discuss the things that really matter to us: young people, housing, government policy, our campaigns and our research.
It's where we ask the difficult questions, demystify the jargon, discuss the topics that affect young people most and give you a glimpse of our day-to-day as a youth homelessness charity.
Eurydice Belezika, Peer Research Coordinator and former Centrepoint resident in London, talks about her experience of conducting research and campaigning to support disadvantaged young people.
This episode looks at how young people in supported accommodation are often worse off when they work more hours.
Our research estimates nearly 122,000 young people asked for help from their local council in 2020-21 because they were homeless or at risk. Dan Poursaeedi, Centrepoint's Senior Policy, Research and Databank Officer, explains the findings of the recent Youth Homelessness Databank report for 2020-2021.
Centrepoint’s goal is to help vulnerable young people become independent enough to live a good life that they can thrive in. And we are open to all homeless young people, regardless of their geographical circumstances. Whether they’ve been kicked out of their family home in London or have travelled to the UK as an unaccompanied minor, we’re here to help.
Our legal team recently experienced a bittersweet victory: through years of hard work they managed to reclaim a huge backlog of benefits payments owed to a young person using Centrepoint’s services. A huge and monumental success, yes -but it certainly wasn’t an easy win.
Our legal team make up a vital part of the service we offer young people at Centrepoint. For those seeking legal support, it can be incredibly difficult to attain without financial aid, and so many often go without. Centrepoint is here to help change that. Nabila, a legal administrator coming to the end of a secondment with the Legal Team, tells us about what she has learnt during her time with the department and the important service they provide.
With over 600,000 shows and 62 million listeners, you could say podcasts are pretty popular - which is why we created our own. This National Podcasting Day, we’re taking a deep dive into one of our two fantastic Centrepoint podcasts, the youth-led Point Made.(Watch this space for the story of our mental health podcast, Centred.) Find out how we made it, why it was important, and discover the young people who helped make it such a passionate podcast.
As recipients of the lowest amount of Universal Credit, young people have been left struggling to make ends meet for decades. When the weekly £20 uplift is removed at the end of this month, many vulnerable young people will be forced to compromise between food, bills or rent – an impossible choice that will make it even harder for homeless young people to move forward with their lives.
Point Made's first episode where former and current Centrepoint residents discuss their research into the benefits system.
Financial benefits, housing support and access to government employment programmes are all key to helping homeless people gain their independence. However, for the homeless, benefits – and the process of claiming them – can sometimes seem confusing. That’s why we’re here to help with our handy guide to your entitlement.
Today sees the London mayoral elections take place once again, but this year will be different from the others: in the wake of a pandemic that has devastated the lives of many all over the country, there is much to rebuild. All candidates have vowed to improve London over the next four years – but who will make a difference to the lives of homeless young people?
Centrepoint’s new report, A Year Like No Other, has reflected on the impact of the last year on vulnerable young people, looking at youth unemployment, homelessness, poverty and mental health, and assessing the impact of the government’s policy interventions during the pandemic. Here, Deputy Service Manager Emily Cretch talks us through the research, and reflects on how the past year has been for her and her team.