The most invisible time of the year
You can help make sure no young person feels invisible or alone this Christmas.
While the rest of Australia feels the joy of the season, some young people don’t get to experience it at all.
For young people like Inez* experiencing homelessness, family breakdown and trauma, Christmas can be the most isolating time of the year.
No fixed address. No shared meal. No easy choices.
With nowhere to turn, many young people can feel forgotten and invisible when they need support most.
This Christmas, your gift can help connect young people to the care they need before they fall further through the cracks and deeper into crisis.
*Names and images of young people changed for their privacy.
We collect your personal information to process your support, provide services, respond to your enquiries, improve our offerings, comply with legal obligations, and manage our relationship with you. Your information may be shared with relevant staff or service providers to help us do this. You can access or correct your information, or make a privacy complaint, by contacting us at privacyofficer@youthoffthestreets.com.au. For more details, see our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.
90% of young people in our crisis accommodation say domestic, family or sexual violence is a major reason they need support
Nearly half of the young people who access our youth support services are experiencing poor mental health
More than two-thirds of young people using our homelessness support service have an income below the Australian poverty line
Your support in action
$61
could help bring basics like food or clothing to a young person living in their car or couch surfing this Christmas.
$92
could help connect a young person to a caseworker who supports them to find safe housing.
$163
could help fund counselling to help a young person recover from abuse and begin healing this Christmas.
Help a young person like Maya know they don’t have to face life’s challenges alone
Maya was 16 when she left an abusive home. Alone and without the stability and support most young people rely on, she spent the next two years moving between refuges, friends’ houses and temporary accommodation.
When Maya entered Youth Off The Streets crisis accommodation, she was battling anorexia and post traumatic stress disorder.
Thanks to supporters like you, Maya had caseworker Lee and the team by her side. With their gentle guidance and expertise, she began rebuilding her confidence, managing her mental health and working towards her goals.
Help a young person like Inez know there’s someone by their side when they need it most
After fleeing family violence, Inez spent years moving between crisis accommodation, temporary housing and even her car. Through it all, she felt invisible and forgotten by the systems meant to help her.
With support from Youth Off The Streets caseworker Linda, Inez finally had someone who listened, understood and stood beside her. Someone who could help her navigate the housing system and advocate for the future she deserves.
Your gift will mean more than the food, counselling or dedicated caseworker support it makes possible.
It will help show young people facing homelessness that they matter, that they’re not invisible and that someone cares enough to stand beside them this Christmas.
“With the Youth Off The Streets team around me, I learned I could have a lot of bad days in a row and keep going. They taught me to believe in myself.
You have helped me to help myself. You sat by my side with a lamp until I could find my own light.”
– Maya