AYAC News

Youth Homelessness Matters is about raising the public awareness about youth homelessness and to celebrate the resilience of young people who are experiencing homelessness in Australia. Nearly half of all homeless Australians are children and young people under the age of 25

"Natalie is a 17 year old girl from the Northern Rivers region. Her parents have had long term drug and alcohol problems and Natalie cannot rely upon them for support, as the relationships have become hostile and distant. She has moved around from family and friends’ couches for the past weeks, but relationships have been stretched and she cannot stay there anymore. Due to a lack of youth crisis accommodation vacancies in the region, a bed for Natalie could not be found and contact has not been maintained due to a lack of outreach services to support her."

On any night in Australia 105,000 people are homeless and nearly half of these are under 25.

(Left: AYAC Executive Director with Deputy Director Youth Sector think youth homelessness matters. Right: YHM 2011 theme - Hide and Seek)

Raise public awareness about youth homelessness and the factors that cause it. Many people view homelessness as an event which only affects adults. YHMD aims to break this misconception by educating and raising awareness that in reality there are far too many youth experiencing homeless in Australia.

Celebrate the resilience of young people to convey a message that young people experiencing homelessness are homeless, not helpless! YHMD aims to communicate that with good support and accommodation; young people can move forward and live productive lives.

Provide opportunities for wider public support for the ‘cause’. YMHD encourages a wider responsibility for youth homelessness and aims to build sponsorship capacity for the sector.

Contribute to the work of ending youth homelessness in Australia.

www.youthhomelessnessmatters.net

To see AYAC's Media Release - click here