Homelessness and Running Away
Homelessness is having nowhere to live. Sometimes things can get so bad for people that they feel like running away from home. Get help and advice on who to contact if you’re thinking about running away or are already living on the streets.
Unhappy at Home?
If you’re finding living at home too difficult, Walsall Children’s services may be able to:
- help you sort things out with your parents
- arrange for you to live with another family member or adult (like an aunt, grandparent or a friend’s parent)
- find you emergency accommodation (for example, with a foster carer), if you’re worried about being hurt at home.
If you want to run away
Whatever your reason for wanting to running away, talking to someone you trust often helps. This could be a family member like a grandparent or auntie/uncle, or a family friend or teacher. Talking to a trusted adult about your problems can help you work out find possible solutions to what is it is that has caused you to feel the need to run away.
There are also the following free and confidential support services available to help you:
ChildLine
Call 0800 1111
Visit: www.childline.org.uk
Runaway Helpline
Call or text: 116 000
Email: 116000@missingpeople.org.uk
Online chat: www.runawayhelpline.org.uk (Available 2.30 – 9pm)
Living on the streets
Living on the streets is very hard. You’ll be cold, hungry and in danger from other people.
You might face problems like:
- having nowhere safe to sleep or rest
- not having food or clean water
- being at risk from dangerous or abusive people
- not being able to wash yourself or your clothes
- getting ill or physically hurt
- having no money
- being attacked or having your belongings stolen from you
- feeling lonely.
Get help if you are homeless
Being homeless means not having somewhere to live, either because you’ve been kicked out of home or have run away and feel like you can’t return.
Many homeless young people:
- are forced to sleep on the street, which is not safe and can only be for a short time
- get friends to lend them a bed or sofa for the night, which could be dangerous, against the law, or get the friend into trouble
- stay with another family member for a short time.
If you’re in any of these situations, you’ll be considered homeless by law.
If you feel unsafe, scared or worried, then please call the police on 101 or 999 and tell them you need help. If you are unable to do this you could ask an adult, such as a train conductor or bus driver to phone them for you, or if you can, walk into a Police station or up to a Police Officer and tell them you have run away.