Sheffield charities shine spotlight on barriers to employment
South Yorkshire based charities YWCA Yorkshire and Sheffield Foyer worked with an undergraduate researcher from the University of Sheffield to explore barriers to employment for young people in supported housing.
The research project, known as Future Forward, was a nine month pilot that directly supported 24 people aged 16-25 out of financial hardship and into the workplace, breaking through barriers to employment by removing the risk of losing housing benefits and wrap around support.
The scheme specifically supported young people living in YWCA Yorkshire’s Peile House and The Guinness Partnership’s Sheffield Foyer. Grant funding was awarded by Opportunity Sheffield and the Homewards Fund.
Claire Harding, Project Manager of Peile House, led on the research project that was inspired by Centrepoint’s work examining the fiscal impact of youth homelessness and Housing Benefit reform. The research, which was supported by the University of Sheffield student, Eleanor Moody, quickly revealed how closely employment outcomes are linked to the way financial support operates within supported housing.
The research confirmed what most frontline services already understand - young people are not failing to engage with work. Instead, they are navigating systems that can make progression into employment financially risky.
A central barrier is the interaction between earnings, Housing Benefit and the higher costs associated with supported housing. Young people moving towards independence often require support that, for whatever reason, was not available to them earlier in life. For those already experiencing homelessness and multiple disadvantages, entering work can lead to changes in benefit entitlement that leave them worse off overall.
To address this, grant funding was used to temporarily subsidise the support-related portion of rent. This made employment financially viable while ensuring continued access to vital support services, effectively levelling the playing field with other young people.
These pressures formed the backdrop to the research, which identified a set of consistent and interconnected barriers; digital exclusion, complex workplace processes, mental health challenges, housing insecurity, and the constant tension between work and maintaining financial stability.
The research highlighted how Housing Benefit rules can create unintended disincentives for employment within supported housing settings. While supported housing provides essential accommodation and support, the transition into work can result in reductions to financial assistance that do not reflect the realities of supported housing costs. For most young people, calculations showed that taking on employment could leave them financially disadvantaged despite earning a wage.
Samantha Mobbs, Sheffield Foyer Manager from The Guinness Partnership said: " For young people moving out of supported housing and into their own long-term accommodation, it’s essential that they get the personal and practical support they need while working if they are going to thrive.
“The Future Forward scheme allowed us to offer a rent reduction programme for young people, who found work, and a move-out grant of £1k.
“Our joint target with YWCA Yorkshire was to get 16 young people into work and off benefits in a 12-month period. We managed to help 24 young people into work within 9 months. This was a fantastic outcome and shows that the issue isn’t with a lack of motivation or ambition on the part of the young people, they just need the barriers removing. They are then allowed to be economical active members of the community saving thousands on the public purse and allowing them to thrive and not just survive.”