Safe and Sound homes seeks emergency accommodation in the Skipton area

Volunteers are being sought to provide emergency accommodation for homeless people in the Skipton area.

Safe and Sound Homes (SASH), a North Yorkshire youth homeless charity, has launched a new service for homeless young people in Skipton and is appealing for more "volunteer hosts" from the community to help. SASH provides overnight emergency accommodation, known as 'nightstop', for homeless young people in the homes of trained and vetted volunteers in York and North Yorkshire. Formed in 1994, the charity has now expanded into the Craven area for the first time. Last year SASH helped keep safe 120 vulnerable young people, providing a total of 436 nights of accommodation. Almost half the young people that SASH helps are just 16 or 17 years old, and the majority have been forced to leave home as a result of family breakdown.

Nina Pinder, strategy and housing access officer at Craven District Council said: "People don't realise that homelessness is a problem in places like Skipton, but it is. It's a hidden problem - young people might be sofa-surfing or sleeping on relatives' floors for a long time before seeking help.

"I'm delighted this service is now available in this area as it's the first step to enabling us to find long-lasting solutions to issues faced by these young people as an integral part of our services for young people."

Peter Robinson, director of SASH, said: "It is a shocking statistic that on average homeless people can expect to die at the age of just 47. The nightstop service is designed to stop young people entering the cycle of homelessness and unemployment that can lead to this devastating outcome.

"Homelessness is rising as a result of the current economic climate and SASH needs to be in a position to meet this demand. We want to encourage people to come forward and help us make a lasting difference to homeless young people in Skipton this year. "At a time of crisis, being put up in a home environment ensures the young person is not isolated and is kept safe at night." he explained. "Volunteering as a host is a great opportunity to join a network of like-minded people who want to help young people in their own communities, and hosts are paid full expenses.

"We would love to hear from anyone in the Skipton area who is interested in finding out more."

For more, ring 01904 652043 or email info@safeandsoundhomes.org.uk.

Article from www.cravenherald.co.uk