This post is about preventing young people from becoming homeless. Preventing homelessness at a young age reduces a person’s chances of becoming homeless as an adult. There is substantial evidence-based guidance about how to prevent youth homelessness.
What is it like to do the work of youth homelessness prevention? The article linked to this post investigates this question by speaking with front line workers and managers working in Ontario, Canada.
The very existence of workers who specialize in preventing youth homelessness tells us that staying housed as a youth can be a challenge. Interviews with those workers and their managers reveals a group of hardworking people who labour in a system that blocks their best efforts.
The study participants described systems that prevent them from preventing youth homelessness. These are systems that operate outside the homeless service system but impact on its effectiveness. Ontario’s emergency income support program, Ontario Works, is one example. The entire monthly allowance less than enough to rent a room.
In the report linked below, the researchers map people’s work experience against the evidence-based guidance on preventing youth homelessness. The mapping helps to pinpoint where the existing systems and structures are getting in the way. When done this way, the research creates a roadmap for systemic reform. Tinkering with the way that homeless services are delivered is never going to be enough. The authors say that change is needed in systems outside the homelessness service sector:
“In practical terms, this looks like deep and sustained provincial investments in education, health and social welfare–including income supports, housing and public transportation.”
The research approach used in this study comes from a branch of sociology called Ethnographic Inquiry (EI). EI starts with experience (in this case, work to prevent homelessness) and examines whether/how the environment for doing the work supports or prevents it from happening1. EI can function as a guide for reforming service provision as well as for the kind of change that would be expected when particular reforms implemented. The research also pinpoints the level of government that would be responsible for the reforms.
This research approach is a welcome breath of fresh air. It shows where things need to change to improve results. The specifics are are intended for an Ontario audience, but the method of inquiry could be pursued in any jurisdiction.
This open access article is published in Youth: The Work of Youth Homelessness Prevention in Ontario: Points of Frustration, Points of Potential
Footnotes
- You can read more about EI at Wikipedia: Ethnographic Inquiry
