Imagine having nowhere to go this Christmas, and no one to turn to for help and support?

As is often reported by the media, the UK is facing a crisis with the number of homeless people rising. Cirencester Housing for Young People (CHYP) continues to help alleviate the problem locally being the only local provider of supported accommodation for vulnerable homeless young people aged 16 to 25.

What we do

Many young people who find themselves homeless as a result of family break-up, mental health issues, abuse or leaving care, present with few life skills. When a young person first arrives at CHYP they are allocated a key worker who helps them to identify their support needs; be it help with literacy, numeracy, budgeting and life-skills. Life skills can include cooking, laundry, social inclusion and leisure activities. Many of the young people also have previously unidentified learning difficulties and some have mental health issues, which we help them to address. When they are ready CHYP then works with the young people to locate appropriate education, work experience or training placements leading to employment and eventually to independent living and sustained tenancies within the community.

CHYP has helped over 600 young people since it was established in 1986. Our experience over more than 35 years has demonstrated that our service provides support that can improve the confidence, life skills and employability of these young people preventing the slide back into homelessness and benefit dependency.

CHYPs dedicated staff provide 24 hour support. How long residents stay with us depends on their age and their individual circumstances. Some maybe be with us only months and others as long as a couple of years. On top of this we support ex-residents as and when they need it.

We monitor each individual’s needs and progress on an ongoing basis through our one to one work. We also maintain an open door policy and contact with past residents. This allows CHYP staff to follow their progress and offers them continuity so that should they be confronted with problems later on they always have someone they know and trust to turn to.