More young women seek support for homelessness than any other group in society, according to a recent report released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
The National Data Collection report found that in 2010-2011 alone, over 10,000 New South Wales females, aged 15 – 24, sought support from homelessness agencies. With other states and territories taken into account, this number grows to 32,500 nationally.
Sir David Martin Foundation CEO, Jannine Jackson, said that for many of these young women, homelessness is the start of descent into drug abuse, mental illness, prostitution and abusive relationships.
“More often than not these girls are escaping domestic violence, abuse and family breakdowns. Many have never experienced a stable home life and have disengaged from education. With few resources and little support, they are an easy target to prey on.”
Alarmingly, of this age bracket, it was the younger end of the spectrum that were more likely to require assistance. The report shows that 1 in 39 NSW females aged 15-19 accessed support in 2010-11, slightly higher than the national figure of 1 in 40.
“This group; unaccompanied women, women with children, and young people all sought assistance because of interpersonal issues, such as domestic violence or the breakdown of a relationship,” said AIHW spokesperson Geoff Neideck.
Jackson stresses the importance of providing assistance to people in this age bracket: “Adolescents and young adults are at a key development stage in their lives – this is when the frontal lobes of the brain undergo their final critical phase of development.
“If intervention is provided at this stage of their lives, then the long term outcomes are generally extremely positive. Our evidence shows that these young people can go on to become positive role models and contributing members of our community.”
The welfare of young people is the key concern of the Sir David Martin Foundation, which works to get young people off the streets, away from unhealthy situations and into care and rehabilitation.
Overall the report found that 230,500 (or 1 in 97 Australians) used specialist homelessness services, increasing from 1 in every 110 over 2009-10.
59% of these (over 135,500) accessing the service were under the age of 25.
Read the full report: “Government-funded specialist homelessness services: SAAP National Data Collection annual report 2010-11: Australia”