Clients visit Westminster

Emma Lewell-Buck (MP for South Shields) and Youth Homeless North East (an organisation that works with young homeless people across our region) hosted an event in Parliament to allow young people the opportunity to discuss with their MP’s the challenges of homelessness.

Thanks to our clients who went along – Kieron Fox, Leigh-Ann Howsden and Ben Matthews.

The group discussed their experiences of welfare reform, benefit sanctions, housing, applying for jobs and the exceptional challenges faced by homeless people when looking for employment.

All of our clients who attended said it was a fantastic experience and would like to attend any future events to discuss their ideas further.

Quotation from Emma Lewell-Buck – “Life is incredibly tough for these young people at the moment. They want to work and make their own way in the world, but for that they need real opportunities and stable employment.  Right now the system is designed to funnel them into any job, whether it pays enough to live or not.  A lot of them rightly feel trapped and that the system is failing them.

“I think it’s really important that MPs hear these stories, and that’s why I held this meeting in Parliament. I’m really grateful to all the MP’s who came, to Youth Homeless North East for all their help organising the visit, and most of all to the young people for sharing their experiences with us and making such a powerful case for change” – See Emma’s web story