AD HC 11
Homeless youth - Judith Semon Dubas – 2018
Lecture outline
Part 1: homelessness
o Definitions and dimensions
o Homeless youth in the Netherlands, US, Europe
o Precursors
o Consequences
o Internet and SSN
o Programs and interventions
Part 2: the movie and sequel discussion
Homeless youth
Young people between the ages of 12 and 25 who have no regular place to stay
Runaways (left home without parent/guardian’s consent)
Throwaways
o Kicked out of their parents’ home or their parents left them
System kids (left problematic social service placements) (50%)
o Aged out of the system or foster homes
Street kids (those lacking basic shelter)
o Live on the street without their parents
Other facts
o Runaways in shelter
o Younger and female are more likely to seek foster homes
o Youth barred from welfare hotels
o 12% left foster care or group home just before going on the street
o 90% return home after a month
o 99% return home within 12 months
Cycle in and out being homeless
Young People’s Living Situation (ETHOS categories) - European Typology of Homelessness
and housing exclusion
Housed
Insecure: not sure where to sleep to tonight (temporary with friends/family, not legal,
threat of eviction/violence, non-conventional, temporary homes)
Houseless: homeless hostel, women’s shelter, children’s institutions, migrant workers
accommodations)
Roofless: street and night shelter
Inadequate: unfit housing, overcrowding
, AD HC 11
Big concern: increase in NL (and EU) and ages! You ‘can not’ be homeless if you are under
the age of 18 (legal requirements: placed back home or foster care).
Interesting: Denmark is considered a rich, happy country.
Southern Europe adolescents leave their parents’ house later
Systematic factors
Housing problems: population is growing, but the housing is not available for Young
people who just came out the educational system (macroperspective).
Who are they?
70% or more male
Most between 16 and 21 (58%) vulnerable age
Ethnic minority/indigenous (33%)
Sexual minority (20% or more) LGBTQ2S
Youth exiting care – aged out of system (foster care)
Youth fleeing violence and abuse at home
Youth with experience in the criminal justice system
Newcomer youth (cultural isolation, language, employment)
Youth with mental health issues
2 out of 5 homeless youth form a risk to safety of other people
o Physical or verbal threats, petty crime
33% have frequent contact with crisis services
Support for homeless youth poorly organized in NL (Wolf & Planije, 2004)
Available services are highly fragmented
No comprehensive shelter and support services for homeless young people (too few
beds!) • Funded from diverse sources therefore criteria for entry varies
Strict exclusion criteria fierce
o Serious mental problems
o Addiction
o Undocumented immigration status
o Health problems requiring considerable physical care
o Aggressive behavior
o Learning problems
No systematic means of documenting number of homeless (especially youth, they are
afraid to bes end back home), who uses shelters or crisis centers, and the
effectiveness of this aid (slowly improving)
Precursors of homelessness
Stressful family backgrounds
Homeless youth - Judith Semon Dubas – 2018
Lecture outline
Part 1: homelessness
o Definitions and dimensions
o Homeless youth in the Netherlands, US, Europe
o Precursors
o Consequences
o Internet and SSN
o Programs and interventions
Part 2: the movie and sequel discussion
Homeless youth
Young people between the ages of 12 and 25 who have no regular place to stay
Runaways (left home without parent/guardian’s consent)
Throwaways
o Kicked out of their parents’ home or their parents left them
System kids (left problematic social service placements) (50%)
o Aged out of the system or foster homes
Street kids (those lacking basic shelter)
o Live on the street without their parents
Other facts
o Runaways in shelter
o Younger and female are more likely to seek foster homes
o Youth barred from welfare hotels
o 12% left foster care or group home just before going on the street
o 90% return home after a month
o 99% return home within 12 months
Cycle in and out being homeless
Young People’s Living Situation (ETHOS categories) - European Typology of Homelessness
and housing exclusion
Housed
Insecure: not sure where to sleep to tonight (temporary with friends/family, not legal,
threat of eviction/violence, non-conventional, temporary homes)
Houseless: homeless hostel, women’s shelter, children’s institutions, migrant workers
accommodations)
Roofless: street and night shelter
Inadequate: unfit housing, overcrowding
, AD HC 11
Big concern: increase in NL (and EU) and ages! You ‘can not’ be homeless if you are under
the age of 18 (legal requirements: placed back home or foster care).
Interesting: Denmark is considered a rich, happy country.
Southern Europe adolescents leave their parents’ house later
Systematic factors
Housing problems: population is growing, but the housing is not available for Young
people who just came out the educational system (macroperspective).
Who are they?
70% or more male
Most between 16 and 21 (58%) vulnerable age
Ethnic minority/indigenous (33%)
Sexual minority (20% or more) LGBTQ2S
Youth exiting care – aged out of system (foster care)
Youth fleeing violence and abuse at home
Youth with experience in the criminal justice system
Newcomer youth (cultural isolation, language, employment)
Youth with mental health issues
2 out of 5 homeless youth form a risk to safety of other people
o Physical or verbal threats, petty crime
33% have frequent contact with crisis services
Support for homeless youth poorly organized in NL (Wolf & Planije, 2004)
Available services are highly fragmented
No comprehensive shelter and support services for homeless young people (too few
beds!) • Funded from diverse sources therefore criteria for entry varies
Strict exclusion criteria fierce
o Serious mental problems
o Addiction
o Undocumented immigration status
o Health problems requiring considerable physical care
o Aggressive behavior
o Learning problems
No systematic means of documenting number of homeless (especially youth, they are
afraid to bes end back home), who uses shelters or crisis centers, and the
effectiveness of this aid (slowly improving)
Precursors of homelessness
Stressful family backgrounds
