A Kamloops advocate wants the province to end youth homelessness by January 2021.
To achieve her goal, Katherine McParland, the Executive Director of A Way Home Kamloops, who was homeless herself, wants to give a voice to 231 marginalized youth who are either homeless or have experienced homelessness from across the province.
“Things began to change when I received housing,” she said. This invoked a great passion in me to elevate the voices of lived experience as the young people who have survived homelessness can help change the system to ensure that no other young person has to go through what they have endured.”
The report, called From Marginalized to Magnified: Youth Homelessness Solutions from Those with Lived Expertise released today, was worked on along with B.C.’s Representative for Children and Youth, Jennifer Charlesworth, who says youth homelessness is a serious issue in the province.
“So we receive about 250 to 290 critical injury reports every month,” she said. “The vast majority of those are 16, 17, and 18 year old young people who are experiencing injuries as a result of the circumstances in their lives.”
The report recommends that the provincial government, led by the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Ministry of Children and Family Development, create and implement an action plan to address youth homelessness.
“This is an ambitious timeline but it speaks to the urgency and significance of the problem,” added McParland. “No young person should be without a home in our province. There is no time to wait. And I would like to offer a special thank you to the young people who made this report possible.”
“The plan should be informed by the solutions offered by the youth who participated in this review and government should continue to seek input from youth with
lived expertise as well as the extensive network of service providers who work with them as it develops this plan.”
In the report, youth identify factors that can lead to homelessness, the impacts it can have on young people, as well as the barriers that prevent access to services and support, while suggesting solutions for ending the problem.
“If one ministry takes on the role of parent, we need other ministries to be extended family,” McParland added. “We can and we must prevent and end youth homelessness in our communities.”