Young People Leaving Care

A Practical Guide for Foster Carers and Residential Workers

The Scottish Council for Single Homeless is launching a new guide “Moving Towards Independence – The Carers Guide” at a conference in Crieff today (Wednesday). The booklet is designed for foster carers, residential workers and anyone caring for a young person. It is both a reference for housing information and a practical tool for helping young people and their carers talk about moving on from care and all that this involves.

Young people leaving care often face huge challenges in making the move into independence. Most lack the back up of a supportive family. This makes achieving success in education, employment, and practical living skills a major challenge. In particular, this group is particular vulnerable to housing crisis and homelessness. The guide is designed to help prevent homelessness amongst this group.

“Our research shows that many foster carers and, more surprisingly, many residential workers, know very little about the Scottish housing system, the rights of young people leaving care and the kinds of challenges that these young people face. We also know that young people turn to foster carers and residential workers for advice. The idea of the booklet is to help foster carers and others best prepare their young people for making the move. And there’s advice for them too. Because this can be a difficult time for carers as well as young people.”
Matt Elton, Head of Youth Unit, Scottish Council for Single Homeless. 

Alison Caulfield-Dow, who heads up the Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum, comments: “Before they have lived on their own for the first time, many young people have a very poor grasp of the realities of independent living. They’ve often no idea about rents, how much their bills will be, what their rights are and where to seek advice. This new booklet is important simply because the better prepared a young person is before they move out of care, the lower the risk they will experience some form of housing crisis.”

Comments on the Guide:

‘A clear and concise guide through the all too often difficult routes to independent living’

Mike Nolan, Homelessness Strategy Officer, Edinburgh Council.

‘A really useful tool to have, and be able to refer to, for foster carers, residential workers and young people themselves’ Sarah Crangle, Fostering Links Project, The Fostering Network

‘Accurate, accessible and above all useful – the guide will provide carers and young people with the answers they need’ Jamie Rennie, Chief Executive, LGBT Scotland

1. Around 500 young people leave residential or foster care every yearin Scotland . And in Scotland over 15,000 young people ‘present as homeless’ – that is they go to their local council because they have nowhere safe and secure to stay. Very many of these young people have previously been looked after or ‘in care’.
   
2. Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum Annual Conference 2005, 29th November- 1st December. This year’s theme is ‘It’s now about action, not just words’ and is focusing on exploring and developing standards for best throughcare and aftercare practice. The Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum is a national organisation that represents the interests of young people leaving care and those who support them.
    
3. Scottish Council for Single Homeless (SCSH) is the national membership organisation for individuals and organisations working with homeless people. Amongst other activities it produces a range of resources for young people, such as the innovative Streets Ahead guide to leaving home (see www.leavinghome.info), and those who work with young people.
    
4. ‘Moving Towards Independence’ is available priced £2/copy or at £30 for a box of 20. The guide is marketed to local authorities and other large organisation with the aim of being distributed to foster carers and residential workers free of charge.
   
5. The Conference programme can be accessed www.scottishthroughcare.org.uk