Off the radar and at risk: children on the streets in the UK

Abstract

Recent research has shown that children and young people are living on the streets in the UK with no support from family or other institutions and very few options for legitimate support, often resorting to dangerous survival strategies that put them at risk from others wishing to harm or exploit them. Many children and young people turn to the streets while still living with parents or carers to escape abuse in the home or because they do not receive attention and care. Integration of the homeless and non‐homeless populations sometimes plays a part in how children or young people find themselves on the streets. Becoming part of a gang, whether formed by groups of homeless people or those from the non‐homeless population, is an important survival strategy when on the streets. Once children and young people reach 16, the range of options for support widens and they become eligible to access services for homeless adults which are often not appropriate for them. Where prevention is not possible, there should be a response to children and young people's needs through outreach work, drop‐in centres and accommodation that operate in an informal way and have the capacity to respond to further requests for support.