Supported Lodgings scheme - why 16 to 17 year olds need your help
Supported Lodgings is a scheme for helping young people aged between 16 and 17 years old.
It means providing a room in your home for a 16 to 17 year old to live in. You provide practical and emotional support and they share your accommodation, lounge, kitchen, bathroom etc, but you don’t have parental responsibility for the young person.
Why do they need your help?
Many young people are disadvantaged by trying to live independently much sooner than their contemporaries and because there is insufficient suitable and affordable accommodation available for this age group.
Most young people make the transition to adulthood with practical and emotional support from their family. This transition includes various changes, for example, from school to work or further education, from the family home to independent accommodation, from financial dependence to personal financial responsibility.
Young people leaving care are often on their own before they are 18, frequently, when they are 16. As a result, many of them will experience long lasting disadvantages.
These young people have not had the life experiences which would give them the knowledge and skills necessary to cope on their own. By providing lodgings with support, the scheme aims to provide a stepping-stone for them, from dependence to full independence.
Supported Lodgings will offer a period of stability during which these young people can be helped to acquire the necessary skills, build up support networks in their community and experiment safely with their increasing freedom and changing status while still having involvement with, and support from, an interested adult.
Interested – then contact the fostering team
If you would like further information, please fill in our online form, call the Fostering Team on 0300 300 8181 or email fostering@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.