Youth Homelessness Prevention

Explore the largest-ever collection of Canadian research and resources on youth homelessness prevention.

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Youth Homelessness Prevention Research Briefs

This 2026 collection of 24 research briefs brings together the largest-ever body of Canadian research and evidence on youth homelessness prevention.

The briefs cover the foundations of youth homelessness prevention, why prevention matters, the economic case for investing earlier, and what the evidence tells us about four leading prevention models: Housing First for Youth, Family and Natural Supports, Reconnect and Upstream Canada. Across these four models, the briefs examine program outcomes, young people’s and families’ experiences, implementation, fidelity, equity and developmental evaluation.

Foundations

Housing First for Youth

Family and Natural Supports

Reconnect

Upstream Canada

Youth Homelessness Prevention Toolkit

The Youth Homelessness Prevention Toolkit provides practical tools to help communities plan, strengthen and implement youth homelessness prevention. It includes resources for working with partners, setting priorities, managing funding and using data, along with guidance on root causes, community systems planning and prevention program models.

The toolkit is hosted on the Homelessness Learning Hub, an online learning platform for the homeless-serving sector, where users can also access self-paced eLearning, training and technical assistance.

Understanding Youth Homelessness Prevention

Preventing youth homelessness requires targeted supports, improved family connections, and coordinated community involvement to help youth successfully transition to adulthood.

Preventing youth homelessness is critical and should be a priority. By effectively targeting and implementing preventive measures, we can achieve better outcomes for youth, their families, and communities and also significantly reduce chronic homelessness.

Preventing youth homelessness requires focusing on the health and well-being of young people throughout their lives because simply improving access to housing is not enough. This means working to keep families and communities together and ensuring that all young people have supportive adults, whether they are relatives or not, to help them transition into adulthood.

Prevention policies and practices should also support homeless or at-risk youth by providing personalized, choice-based supports that help them maintain their housing, stay in school, find and keep jobs, and maintain healthy relationships with friends and family.

Why Focus on Youth?

The experience of youth homelessness is generally distinct from adult homelessness, with implications for both policy and practice. In Canada, youth homelessness refers to “the situation and experience of young people between the ages of 13 and 24 who are living independently of parents and/or caregivers, but do not have the means or ability to acquire a stable, safe or consistent residence”.

It is estimated that between 12% and 20% of people experiencing homelessness are youth, although this may be an underestimate as youth are more likely to be part of the hidden homeless, making it difficult to count them accurately.

The most recent national Point-in-Time Count found that youth cited "conflict with parent or guardian" as the primary reason for homelessness, while adults noted "insufficient income for housing." This is consistent with extensive research indicating family conflict as the main cause of youth homelessness. In the Without a Home study, 75% of participants mentioned the inability to get along with their parents as the key reason for their homelessness.

Failure to adequately prepare and support youth to exit state care is a major contributing factor to homelessness. While only 0.3% of Canadian youth are estimated to have had some involvement with child protection, research shows that 57.8% of youth experiencing homelessness have had such involvement, with 47.1% having a history of placements in foster care or group homes. Additionally, over 70% of Indigenous youth and 63% of 2SLGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness in Canada have been involved in the child welfare system.

Homeless youth face unique challenges, experiencing detrimental effects on their health and well-being. They are at a higher risk of being victims of crime and exploitation through human trafficking. These challenges make it difficult for them to transition out of homelessness easily, especially considering that many of them find themselves in this situation before they are legally or practically able to obtain and maintain housing on their own.

A study on Indigenous youth homelessness prevention highlighted the multiple interlocking experiences of prejudice, discrimination, and xenophobic violence faced by Indigenous youth due to their race. The researchers noted that the racialization of identity for Indigenous young people has legal and sociocultural dimensions, among others.

Furthermore, young people in the midst of adolescence and the transition to adulthood face unique challenges due to underdeveloped problem-solving, decision-making, and planning skills, which can undermine their housing stability. Therefore, it is crucial to consider the impact of age when examining the causes, characteristics, and conditions of homelessness.

Age of First Experience of Homelessness

The age at which a person first experiences homelessness can significantly impact their life. Research shows that over 40% of young people who are currently homeless had their first experience before the age of 16. This group faces unique challenges and is more likely to report abuse, neglect, involvement with child protection, and various other difficulties compared to those who became homeless at 16 or older.

Unfortunately, in addressing homelessness, many communities do not prioritize youth. In most parts of Canada, there are no support systems for youths under 16, despite their high needs. Additionally, the age at which support services begin for young people is inconsistent; some communities start at 16, while others start at 18 or 21. This lack of response and infrastructure for youths under 16 can give the impression of a lack of youth homelessness problem, as there is no data on this age group. However, this only delays the recognition of their need for support.

Youth Homelessness and Chronicity

The focus on ending chronic homelessness raises the question of whether early experiences of homelessness are connected to chronically being homeless later in life. The Government of Canada has aimed to end chronic homelessness, but it has largely overlooked the links between early homelessness and later chronicity, as well as the connection between youth homelessness and later experiences of chronic homelessness.

Many young people facing homelessness can break free from the situation, but those with adverse childhood experiences and unstable housing history may become chronically homeless. Data from the 2020-2022 Point-in-Time count shows 69-72% of adults aged 25 and older were considered chronically homeless. For unaccompanied youth aged 13-24, the percentage was 58%. While this rate is lower than that of adults, it's still concerning, as it could contribute to an increase in adult homelessness.

Recent national Point-in-Time counts also revealed that 43-50% of all respondents had their first experience of homelessness before the age of 25. The implications of this information for prevention are significant. First, there's a need for earlier intervention to help young people at risk. Second, efforts to stabilize housing for youth should involve strengthening community, family, and natural supports, considering that family conflict is a primary reason for youth homelessness. Third, a high percentage of homeless adults had their first experiences of homelessness as youth, indicating that the path to chronic homelessness often begins at a young age.

It is vital to prioritize addressing and preventing youth homelessness early on. Doing so will not only lead to better outcomes for young people, their families, and their communities but also have a positive long-term impact on preventing adult homelessness and chronic homelessness.

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