The Big Questions is our bi-annual survey of young people living in supported accommodation, asking about their experiences of their Foyers, their visions of the future, and what’s important to them right now. It’s one of the ways we make sure we’re always listening and trying to hear from as many young people as possible, holding ourselves to account against our new youth influence and involvement strategy.
The first time we ran the survey was in spring 2020 when the pandemic was just beginning and the first lockdown was still underway. Since then, we’ve used the results to shape our programmes, write our youth involvement strategy, and write applications for funding. Every response we receive helps us to be truly youth-led in our work.
We received a massive 124 responses from 22 services, up from 86 from 18 services in spring 2020. Thank you to Aberdeen Foyer, Blackburn with Darwen, Bodmin, Braintree, Bridge, Carn Brea, Coops + Brecon, Crewe YMCA, ESYM, Heather Court, Ryde Foyer (Isle of Wight), Liskeard, Monarch Court, Newhaven, Plymouth, Ravenhead, Swan House, Torbay, Verve Place, Wiltshire, YMCA Derbyshire and YMCA Milton Keynes.
WHAT’S IMPORTANT TO YOU
When asked what causes are important to them, young people in supported housing services overwhelmingly drew attention to mental health (66%). Animal rights (32%) and homelessness (31.5%) are also important to them, as well as causes that contribute to a happy family life, such as children and young people (30%) and domestic abuse (26.5%). This is consistent with the survey we conducted in summer 2020 in which the three most important causes were mental health (58%), domestic abuse (58%) and homelessness (53%).
Mental health was also noted as the biggest challenge young people face today (80%), followed by employment (46%) and housing (44%). The increase in the number of young people naming mental health as most important highlights the impact of the pandemic on coping mechanisms like social connections, and the need for effective services.
