youth homelessness

With the QLD Government recent announcement of their commitment to funding the needs of vulnerable young people in care up to age 21, the CREATE Foundation is now urging the NSW Government to follow suit. Amplify the Voice of Care Leavers NSW – it’s time to make it 21.

NSW young people currently are the only cohort of young people in Australia without adequate support to 21, other states and territories now have lifted the age from 18 to 21 already. This means that children and young people in care begin their preparation for leaving at just 15.

CREATE 2009 Survey

Findings from a 2009 survey conducted by the CREATE foundation on care leavers demonstrated that:

• 35% were homeless in the first year of leaving care;
• 46% of boys were involved in the juvenile justice system;
• 29% were unemployed;

Homestretch

The Home Stretch is a national campaign, formed to seek change to the current leaving care arrangements for young people in state care.

New research shows the NSW Government will more than triple their return on investment for every dollar spent on keeping young people in care until they are 21, saving NSW taxpayers $222 million over the next 10 years.

Analysis by Deloitte commissioned by Home Stretch Campaign NSW Source.

Telethon Kids Institute

The Telethon Kids Institute’s Developmental Pathways and Social Policy team was commissioned by the Department of Communities to investigate outcomes for children who had experienced out-of-home care, up until 23 years of age. The team found young people who had been in care were a highly vulnerable and disadvantaged group, at high risk of negative outcomes such as mental health disorders, justice involvement, and incomplete education. Source.

CREATE Foundation urges the Perrottet Government to listen to, and try to understand the issues that young care leavers face, and support young people till they reach the age of 21, regardless of if they are in foster, kinship or residential care. 

What can you do?

Using the hashtag #itsyourturnNSW #makeit21, share and post about the campaign and help young people transitioning from care to adulthood have their voices heard.

• Follow CREATE Foundation on our social media channels and join the conversation. Help us share the message. It’s time for a change. #itsyourturnNSW #makeit21
• Share a video message with them online or to marketing@create.org.au – they want to hear your views and promote them to key decision-makers.
• Use CREATE social media posts and share them to your social feeds using #itsyourturnNSW #makeit21 @CREATEfnd

More details about the campaign can be found here along with marketing resources and their Advocacy Promo Kit.

We think young people deserve better and we think that NSW can do better.