Joseph's story
We provide a safe and welcoming environment where homeless young people can develop life skills, receive support and access training and education. We also provide accommodation for up to twelve months for 16 to 21 year olds.
Joseph's story
In January 2006, Joseph came to the Centre's Drop-in service. Despite his limited English, staff discovered that Joseph was homeless, 20 years old and originally from Angola where he had survived imprisonment, torture, and abuse. He had come to the UK as an asylum seeker in September 2005 and was accommodated until his asylum application was approved. Joseph then had to leave his accommodation and spent two months with nowhere to stay. Most of the time he slept on the streets and occasionally got some respite by spending the night on buses. Drop-in staff managed to secure short-term emergency accommodation and referred him to the Centre's English language classes for help with learning English.
As a result of his experiences of torture, Joseph suffered from depression and had twice attempted suicide. He had also developed various physical complaints, and received treatment from the Centre's medical centre. Joseph was assessed by the emergency accommodation he was staying in as having adequate living skills to manage in shared accommodation. But Joseph was very unhappy in the shared flat and came back to the Drop-in for further support. Drop-in staff liaised with the Centre's Hostel and they agreed to interview him. It was recognised that Joseph would benefit from a higher level of support and was offered a room shortly afterwards. Joseph can stay in the Hostel for 16-21 year olds for up to a year and during his time he will receive constant support from staff and our Move-on team to assist him in preparing and planning for his future.
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