Participle

Last week’s House of Lord’s judgment on duty of care widens our statutory definition of youth wellbeing. It’s about time. The ruling says it is not enough for local councils to put a roof over a homeless young person’s head, they must also provide all-around support. Safety isn’t just about attending to the most urgent of needs but also about adding to young people’s capacity to live life independently.

Participle’s work with young people in Brighton and Croydon is all about widening the definition of youth wellbeing. We’ve met lots of young people who have basic needs being met, but who are not thriving. They don’t have a real sense of purpose or possibility. They don’t feel valued. They don’t have the capabilities to find and keep meaningful employment, let alone live life on their own terms. We think the good adolescence is about all of these things--not simply having a place to live or staying out of trouble. We already invest in young people through schools and a raft of children’s’ services; that investment shouldn’t be about responding to or averting crises, but actually inputting into young people’s success. That means increasing their sense of self, their connections, and their capabilities.

Housing can be a powerful entry point to all of these things. Rather than look at housing as a way of getting young people off the streets, we should look at housing as an opportunity to build young people’s resiliency. This isn’t just an exercise in better coordination and ensuring young people have access to a full range of services. We need to look at what those services are designed to do, and the ways in which they help young people process past events and shape their sense of the future. The House of Lords was right to conclude young people are entitled to support beyond suitable housing; the real question is, what shape is that support and how can we make it an enabler rather than a gap-filler?