City and police work on child homelessness
The City of Kwinana has labelled youth homelessness a “complex” issue.
The Telegraph revealed last month issue children as young as 11 had been reported sleeping rough on Calista Oval and committing petty crimes to feed themselves.
Senior Sergeant Glen Willers said police had since seen a reduction in youth gathering at known sleep-out areas in Kwinana.
“We have been policing the areas where children were congregating and we have not had any reports recently,” he said.
“All we can hope is that they have gone back to their families.”
Kwinana Mayor Carol Adams said youth homelessness and homelessness in general, was a complex issue throughout WA and required a “big-picture approach” from State leaders.
“While certainly not isolated to Kwinana, it is essential that we understand how the problem affects our particular region and that we implement strategies to tackle the issues unique to us,” she said.
Cr Adams said the City was working with a regional committee in a Homelessness Working Group, which aimed to tackle the issues at their core and provide long-term change.
She highlighted programs and services at the Zone Youth Space as an example of the focus the City was putting on the development and support of local youth.
