Emergency accommodation for teenage girls and young women

The Salvation Army has opened emergency accommodation in Wellington for homeless teenage girls and young women.

Sanctuary House will provide accommodation and support for up to four young women aged 15-23 at a time.

They will be supported by three live-in volunteer supervisors. Two places will be for girls referred from Child, Youth and Family and the other two places will be open to referrals from community groups, the courts and wider community.

Sanctuary House manager Ruth Sylvestre says there is little transitional accommodation in the Wellington region for girls and interest for places at Sanctuary House is already high. ‘Some of the girls will stay with us because there’s conflict within their families or because their parents can’t care for them. Some have been homeless on the streets and others have been couch-surfing, or staying with friends—and that’s not tenable in the long-term.’

Girls will stay at Sanctuary House until they are ready to live independently and have suitable housing in place. The aim is to prepare them for work or training and prepare them for moving into permanent accommodation. During their stay, they will learn basic life skills. These include cooking, personal hygiene, operating a household budget, job searching and CV preparation, and flat hunting.

Basic life skills, including interpersonal skills, are often something these young people have not been taught, says Ruth. ‘And if something we take for granted and as simple as communication skills is missing, this can be a huge barrier for them when it comes to finding work or accommodation.’

Staff will provide advocacy when their clients need to deal with WINZ, the courts or other agencies, and can refer them to other support agencies if required. They can also access other Salvation Army services such as addiction services and employment training.

The house was opened by Major Rod Carey (Divisional Commander, Central Division) on 18 October. It is managed by The Salvation Army Wellington 614 Corps, which runs a similar home, The Inn, for young men.

• For more information, go to The Inn