Orana Support Service, Foyer Foundation lobby for Youth Foyer in Dubbo

A regional service is advocating for a youth centre to promote stable accommodation and essential services for young people. Here’s what they are lobbying for.

A specialist homeless service in the state’s central west is advocating for stable accommodation while providing essential local services to vulnerable youth.

Orana Support Service’s chief executive officer Tina Reynolds told The Dubbo News the service had been for lobbying for a Youth Foyer for years through state and federal governments for young people aged between 16 to 24 who were at risk or experienced homelessness.

The Foyer Foundation, an organisation which established the Youth Foyer, has lobbied to the Federal Government to invest $184 million to construct 10 40-unit foyers in 10 cities, including Dubbo, over the next three years.

Ms Reynolds said the service runs the bail emergency crisis accommodation for children who do not have a safe space to go to for up to 28 days.

“After that, where do the kids go?” Ms Reynolds said.

Orana Support Service staff advocate for a youth foyer. Photo: Orana Support Service.

“We see a lot of youth crime and things like that happening in regional areas where there’s nowhere for kids to go and we found that to be a real gap here in Dubbo.

“We identified this around two years ago so we started looking into alternatives that would help the youth here and the foyer really stood out to me.”

She said 40 per cent of all people who experience homelessness are young people under the age of 24, with the foyer specifically targeting the age group.

Orana Support Service is advocating for a Youth Foyer to support the state’s western region.

The foyer would offer a safe and stable place to live for up to two years, while providing services like education, employment and life support.

“One in three who come out of homecare between 15 and 17 experience homelessness within one year,” she said.

“We have nothing here for our youth here in Dubbo.

“We cover a large area – we get people coming in from Bourke, Brewarrina, Cobar, Nyngan, Wellington and Gilgandra so we cover a large proportion of our state.”

She said 80 per cent of youth who enter foyers and stay at least one year exit with secure employment and safe accommodation.

Orana Support Services staff, volunteers and Dubbo residents will be partaking in the Camino de Santiago Walk in Spain in September to raise money for the foyer.

She said the service also provides sausage sizzles at Elston Park in Dubbo on Wednesday from 4.30pm for vulnerable clients in the community.