UVic study: Program provides vital support for former youth in care

A community program that provides support for former foster youth at risk of homelessness is having demonstrable, meaningful and practical results, a University of Victoria study shows.

The evaluation study, believed to be the first of its kind in Canada, compared participants in the Link program at Aunt Leah’s Place in New Westminster with a comparison group of similar former youth in care. The transition to adulthood and independent living is particularly difficult for some youth who lose access to government care-related support when they turn 19 and leave their foster families. Many have not graduated from high school, are underemployed or unemployed, and struggling with mental health and addictions.

“When youth are involved with the Link program and its one-to-one approach, they are more likely to find housing, gain confidence and independence, and connect with health and community services,” says Dr. Deborah Rutman, the lead researcher from UVic’s School of Social Work and co-author of Avoiding the Precipice: An Evaluation of Aunt Leah’s Link Program in Supporting Youth from Foster Care.

“The youth workers I’ve met through Aunt Leah’s are still a part of my life today,” says Bayleigh Marie, a Link program participant. “They’ve made a huge difference in my life and I’m a different person than I was four years ago.”

Among the report recommendations are: continued and increased funding for the program, expansion of the program to other municipalities, and extending government care-related support to young people to age 24.

To find out more about Aunt Leah’s Place http://auntleahs.org/
Copy of the full study is available at http://www.uvic.ca/hsd/socialwork/research/home/projects/index.php

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