'Working together is key to tackling young homelessness and mental health problems'

CHRIS MARTIN, CEO of The Mix, praises 'groundbreaking' collaboration to launch helpline
Chris Martin: The Mix chief praises the collaboration with Centrepoint
The Mix
5 December 2016

Today’s young people face unprecedented challenges.

There is immense pressure to perform in school, it is harder to get jobs, to find affordable housing and to face the constant assault of social media.

While many of the traditional issues faced by young people - such as teenage pregnancy and drug misuse - have been improving, we have seen a shocking rise in two other areas; mental health and homelessness.

Every year some 300,000 school-aged people struggle with anxiety and depression and this rises to 1 in 3 in those not in employment, education or training.

Homeless helpline: Volunteers and staff from The Mix will be working with the Centrepoint team to help young people
Matt Writtle

More than half of people presenting as homeless are under 25 with many more “hidden” homeless living in insecure accommodation.

The Mix provides free, confidential support and counselling to under 25s through its telephone, web and social media services.

We support young people holistically. We talk about everything from housing to bullying, from money to self-harm, from break-ups to binge drinking.

Two million young people will access our service this year with over 250,000 of those coming from London.

But we want to do more to tackle the big issues facing young people.

And we believe we can massively increase our impact by working with others.

That is why The Mix is working with Centrepoint to deliver a groundbreaking new helpline to directly support young people at risk of homelessness.

At a time when young people need more help than ever, many of the statutory services that previously supported the health and wellbeing of young people have been cut.

Thanks to the generosity of the public, charities like The Mix can be there for young people in crisis providing life changing support when they need it most.

Chris Martin, CEO of The Mix

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