What’s it like to be homeless?

CareSouth youth case worker Jen Toms is determined to change the stigma associated with youth homelessness. Jen, a caseworker at our Shoalhaven Youth Support Service (SYSS), does this with a hands-on approach. Armed with a truckload of cardboard boxes she frequently visits schools in the Shoalhaven and gives students a cardboard box, some sticky tape and scissors and asks them to create a home.

“Students are challenged to build a house, just like a person living on the street might do,” said Jen. “While assembling their cardboard creations I ask them to think about someone who might be homeless, what things might be like for them, how they might survive.

“It is an important conversation because the general perception of homeless youth is that they are dysfunctional, druggos, bums and there because of their own choice. We aim to show students the importance of empathy, non-judgement, and to break down the fear associated with a homeless person.”

Jen explains to students that programs like SYSS offer a safety net for young people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Caseworkers focus on building young people’s resilience through support, assistance and guidance and help them access resources and referral networks.

“We discuss how homelessness doesn’t always look like people sleeping rough,” said Jen. “It can also be couch surfing, and not having a stable long-term address. We make young people aware of our service by having a conversation with them and creating something constructive.”

The SYSS program has a focus on early intervention (Outreach) which aims to support young people at risk of becoming homeless by facilitating the restoration of family relationship breakdown when possible and stabilising young people in their accommodation options. The Outreach program allows young people to be supported from an individualistic approach, identifying their specific needs and supporting them with a tailored case plan. This involves areas such as advocacy, basic budgeting, cooking and cleaning, self-care, access to professional advice, access to education and referrals to other services.

“The SYSS Outreach program supports up to 70 young people each year and helps them begin their journey to independence.” Said Jen.

As well as this, SYSS also has a short-term accommodation service. This program is available for young people aged 16-24 who require immediate housing, which they can receive for 6-8 weeks. During this time the focus is on identifying stable accommodation options for the young people, while helping them access all the services offered by our Outreach program. When they leave the residential program they can continue to be supported for up to 12 months in the Outreach program.

In 2016/2017 the combined number of young people accepted for both the SYSS Outreach and Residential Program was 140.