The parents of, or those with parental responsibility for, 16 and 17 year olds are responsible for their children's welfare. Our key commitment is to keep families together in their homes wherever possible (and where it is safe to do so) because this is best for the child. Homelessness at a young age should be avoided wherever possible.
- Are you having constant fall outs with your 16/17 year old?
- Do you think you would benefit from some help or support to make things easier at home?
- Would you like more information on what their options are?
Parents of, or those who have parental responsibility for, 16 and 17 year olds are responsible for their children's welfare.
Our key commitment is to keep families together in their homes wherever possible because this is best for the young person, where it is safe to do so. There is a range of preventative work taking place at a local level, which supports this. For most young people, staying in their family home (with support) is usually the best outcome for them and support can be accessed whilst a young person is still at home.
We will always expect to speak to the parent/carer about why the young person cannot go home and talk about whether we could offer any help (not financial) to keep the young person at home.
If at any point there are concerns for the young person's safety, possible Child Sexual Exploitation or there are Safeguarding concerns then a referral to the Safeguarding Hub should be made on: 0300 373 2723.
The Youth Homeless and Housing Officer for your area can help you if your child/young person is aged 16/17.
Emmie Sutherland (Barrow and South Lakes) on 07825 313726
If your child is 18 or over, you can contact the local housing office at your local council. Contact details can be found on the Youth homelessness - useful contacts | Westmorland and Furness Council page.
A young person can leave home at 16 and get a council flat...
No, this is not the case. A person under the age of 18 cannot hold a tenancy in their own right by law. They can access supported accommodation providing they are 16+ (and in Barrow they must have officially left school at the end of year 11). However, supported accommodation is only for young people who are homeless, have nowhere else to go and could not manage to live alone without support. For more information contact your local Youth Homelessness Case Officer.
Getting pregnant guarantees you a house...
Being provided with accommodation is connected to having nowhere else to go. Being homeless and genuinely having nowhere else to go would mean you would have a priority need to be housed. However, the law would still apply that a person under the age of 18 cannot hold a tenancy in their own right. This would be the case if you were pregnant or not! Pregnancy does not guarantee a house of your own!