> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Leaving Care Shouldn't Mean Facing Homelessness - URL: https://april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io/leaving-care-shouldnt-mean-facing-homelessness/ - Published: 2026-10-01T13:23:11.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-01T13:23:11.000Z - Author: April Kavanagh née Plant - Tags: Articles, News **For many young people, turning 18 means university, work, training or taking their first steps towards independence. For a young person leaving State care, that transition can look very different.** Focus Ireland has been highlighting the need for strong housing protections and continued support for young people making the transition from State care into adulthood. Its work comes against the backdrop of a wider youth homelessness crisis. In July 2026, [2,104 young people aged 18–24 were recorded as homeless in Ireland](https://www.focusireland.ie/press-release/focus-ireland-calls-for-urgent-action-as-homelessness-rises-again-to-17527/?ref=april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io). But within those figures lies another important question: what happens to young people who have spent part of their childhood in State care when they are expected to begin navigating adulthood? ## What Happens When a Young Person Leaves Care? Turning 18 does not mean that every form of support available to a young person who has been in care simply disappears. Eligible young people leaving State care can receive [aftercare services from Tusla](https://www.tusla.ie/services/alternative-care/after-care/what-are-aftercare-services/?ref=april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io) as they make the transition into adulthood. Preparation for leaving care should begin before a young person turns 18 and includes an assessment of their needs and the development of an individual aftercare plan. Aftercare can include support with accommodation, education, training, employment, finances, health and wellbeing, as well as practical assistance as a young person begins living more independently. Some young people may also receive residential aftercare accommodation where they are not yet ready to live independently. There are also specific supports connected with education and training. Eligible young adults participating in approved education or accredited training may receive Tusla's Aftercare Allowance, while aftercare services can continue up to age 23 for eligible young people engaged in accredited education or training. These supports matter. Any discussion about young people leaving care should acknowledge what already exists while also asking whether those supports can meet the very different needs of the young people relying upon them. ## The Link Between Care and Homelessness Focus Ireland's [submission to the National Policy Framework on Alternative Care](https://www.focusireland.ie/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Focus-Ireland-Submission-to-National-Policy-Framework-on-Alternative-Care-1.pdf?ref=april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io) highlights the relationship between leaving State care and youth homelessness. The organisation cites research by the Dublin Region Homeless Executive examining young people experiencing homelessness in 2023. Among young adults aged 18–24, leaving State care was the fifth most frequently recorded reason for entering emergency accommodation. For young adults aged 18–19 entering homelessness for the first time, however, family breakdown and leaving State care were identified as the main pathways into homelessness. Focus Ireland also cautions that the figures may underestimate the number of homeless young people who have previously experienced care because only one reason for entering emergency accommodation needs to be recorded. ## Can Housing Be Part of the Solution? Focus Ireland is already testing a different approach through its [Supported Housing for Youth (SHY) programme](https://www.focusireland.ie/press-release/focus-ireland-marks-one-year-of-supported-housing-for-youth-programme-tackling-youth-homelessness/?ref=april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io). Based on Housing First for Youth principles, the programme provides young people with secure housing alongside individualised support rather than expecting them to progress through emergency accommodation first. Focus Ireland reported that 15 young people aged 18–24 had moved into safe and stable homes through the programme after experiencing homelessness. Participants include care leavers, young parents and young people who have experienced other significant challenges. The organisation has called for this approach to be evaluated and developed as part of a wider model of youth-specific housing support. --- ## Education Can Extend Support — But What About Those Who Struggle to Get There? Education and accredited training can provide an important pathway for young people leaving care. For those who are able to take that route, there are additional supports available. Eligible young adults participating in approved education or accredited training can qualify for [Tusla's weekly Aftercare Allowance](https://www.tusla.ie/services/alternative-care/after-care/tell-me-more-about-financial-support-while-attending-accredited-training-educatio/?ref=april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io), while some aftercare support can continue up to age 23. But not every young person leaving care will be ready or able to move immediately into further education, training or employment. A young person's childhood may have included disrupted schooling, instability, changes of placement, family difficulties or other experiences that affected their education and preparation for adulthood. Some young people may have additional support needs. Others may simply need more time and stability before education, training or employment becomes a realistic next step. That should not automatically be interpreted as a lack of ambition. Sometimes, reaching the starting line requires support of its own. --- ## Stories Within Reflection: The Stones We Carry This part of the story is particularly personal to me. I grew up as one of eight children, and several of my brothers and sisters spent time in the care of the State. I witnessed first-hand how profoundly some of them struggled with what they had experienced during childhood and with the upheaval that followed. By the time some of them reached 18, further education, training or employment simply did not appear to be a realistic next step. I cannot speak for exactly what was happening inside each of them. Their experiences and circumstances were their own. But from what I witnessed, adulthood had arrived according to the calendar before some were emotionally or developmentally ready for everything adulthood expected of them. I have written before about childhood trauma as a backpack filled with stones. In [*The Story Behind Stories Within*](https://april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io/why-i-am-writing-about-the-things-we-carry/), I reflected on how the things we experience as children can accumulate — one stone after another — until the weight becomes difficult to carry. I think about that image when I consider what happened to some of my own brothers and sisters. By the time they reached 18, their backpacks were already extraordinarily heavy. We can encourage a young person to keep walking — to enter further education, begin training, find employment and build an independent life — but we also have to ask how much weight they are being expected to carry while doing it. For some members of my family, those next steps simply weren't achievable at that point in their lives. Some experienced homelessness. Others became involved in dangerous environments and groups where instability gradually became their new normal. I don't share this to suggest that this is the inevitable path for young people leaving care. It isn't. Nor do I believe that entering care itself can simply be blamed for what happened to members of my family. Their lives were shaped by experiences that began long before they entered the care system. Many of the stones in their backpacks had been placed there long before they entered State care. But that is precisely why I believe we need to look beyond a young person's birthday. **Turning 18 does not empty the backpack.** And perhaps, before asking a young person to carry it alone, we should first ask what we can do to make the load a little lighter. ## Beyond a Birthday: Is Age Enough? Turning 18 is an important legal milestone but a birthday alone cannot tell us whether somebody is ready to navigate independent adult life. Two young people can be exactly the same age and have completely different needs. One may be ready to move into their own accommodation, attend college, manage their finances and navigate adult services with relatively little assistance. Another may need considerably more support. That is why I believe transition planning for young people leaving care should look at the whole young person — not simply the date on their birth certificate. ## Should Developmental Readiness Be Part of Aftercare? Tusla's existing aftercare system already includes assessment of a young person's needs and individual aftercare planning. But I believe there is a case for giving even greater consideration to a young person's emotional wellbeing, developmental readiness and individual capacity for independent living, with access to an appropriate mental-health assessment by a qualified professional where needed. This should not be about assigning someone an “emotional age” or deciding whether they are mature enough to be considered an adult. It should be about understanding the individual while asking the vital questions such as: What have they experienced? What support network do they have? Are there educational needs that have not yet been addressed? How are they coping emotionally? Do they feel capable of living independently? And what practical, psychological or social support might give them the best chance of succeeding? The purpose shouldn't be to create another test a young person has to pass before receiving help. It should help answer a much more useful question: *What does this particular young person need in order to make a safe and successful transition into adulthood?* For one person, that might mean support entering university. For another, it might mean vocational training or employment assistance. For somebody else, it could mean supported accommodation, counselling, help developing practical living skills or simply more time. A system centred on the individual would recognise that becoming 18 is a legal milestone but it is not a measurement of readiness. ## A Transition, Not a Cliff Edge Most young adults continue to rely on family in some way beyond their 18th birthday. They might return home after their rental accommodation falls through, ask someone how to complete an unfamiliar form, need help with bills or simply need somewhere safe to land when life becomes too difficult. For young people leaving care, that safety net may look very different. The question isn't whether Ireland provides support after 18\. It does. The question is whether the type, duration and accessibility of that support can respond to the very different circumstances of each young person leaving care. If the State has assumed responsibility for a child during part of their childhood, perhaps the transition into adulthood shouldn't begin simply by asking: *“How old are you?”* Perhaps another question matters just as much: “What do you need to be ready?” > Leaving care should be a transition towards independence — not a transition towards homelessness. --- ## Sources & Further Reading - [Focus Ireland — Aftercare Services](https://www.focusireland.ie/get-help/aftercare/?ref=april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io) — information about aftercare support and accommodation. - [Focus Ireland — National Policy Framework on Alternative Care submission](https://www.focusireland.ie/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Focus-Ireland-Submission-to-National-Policy-Framework-on-Alternative-Care-1.pdf?ref=april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io) — recommendations and evidence concerning care leavers and youth homelessness. - [Tusla — Aftercare Services](https://www.tusla.ie/services/alternative-care/after-care/what-are-aftercare-services/?ref=april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io) — information about statutory aftercare services and eligibility. - [**Focus Ireland — Supported Housing for Youth (SHY) Programme**](https://www.focusireland.ie/press-release/focus-ireland-marks-one-year-of-supported-housing-for-youth-programme-tackling-youth-homelessness/?ref=april-kavanagh-nee-plant.ghost.io)— *Information about Focus Ireland's youth-specific supported housing model.* *Stories Within is an independent personal writing and advocacy website. The factual information in this article is drawn from the organisations and sources linked above. Sections identified as Stories Within reflection represent the author's own perspective and lived experience. Coverage of an organisation does not imply sponsorship, endorsement or formal affiliation.*