Research reports

Under the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017, everyone in England approaching their local authority for help because they are homeless or at risk of homelessness is entitled to an assessment. Unfortunately, Centrepoint’s Databank research has found that this is not happening in practice, with only 67 percent of the young people who approached their local authority in England in the financial year 2023/24 receiving an assessment.

Supported housing exists to help people to live as independently as possible, helping improve their quality of life, their well-being, their health, and their employment prospects. Yet people in supported housing face a specific barrier and disincentive to work due to the way the welfare system is configured.

Family breakdown is the main cause of youth homelessness. Our research shows that while conflict happens in all families and is triggered by similar topics, it is far more likely to escalate in households that are already facing multiple challenges. This can in turn lead to a young person being made to leave or choosing to leave home before they are ready to.

This research explores the barriers young people face in securing stable housing. Our 2023-24 Move On report is the first iteration of a multi-year research project exploring the accessibility and affordability of housing for young people who have experienced homelessness.

1 in 62 young people in the UK faced homelessness in 2023-24. The Youth Homelessness Databank once again underscores the critical importance of having robust and comprehensive data to fully understand the scale and nature of youth homelessness.

This report captures the first year of learning in a three-year evaluation of the initiative, drawing on interviews with 19 stakeholders and analysis of the first year of Upstream surveys.

This guide outlines key changes that employers can make to improve recruitment and employment practices and support homeless young people to access work.

Centrepoint’s 2022/23 Youth Homelessness Databank has found that more than a third of the young people who approached their local authority in England in 2022/23 were not assessed for eligibility.

Young people experiencing homelessness face unique barriers to employment including issues with the benefits system and a lack of local jobs. These barriers can mean that homeless young people are often unable to access employment, resulting in diminished self-confidence and limited resilience.

A vote to end youth homelessness - Centrepoint manifesto for the next General Election

This research examines how Government legislation is being, and may be, used to criminalise young people who are rough sleeping. In doing this, we examine Freedom of Information Request data delineating how the Vagrancy Act has affected young people and explore interview and survey data highlighting the extent to which young people are criminalised by measures such as Public Space Protection Orders. Through this lens, we then analyse the potential impact of the Criminal Justice Bill on young people experiencing homelessness.

This report explores homeless young people’s access to social and private rented accommodation using the following methods: a survey of front-line staff working for 30 organisations supporting over 800 young people across England; interviews with homeless young people and local authority staff; a comparison between social housing allocations and main housing duty rates (2021-22 & 2022-23) to show how local authorities are meeting homeless young people’s need for social housing; and an analysis of LHA rates.