Women's Views on News |
| Support the single residents in Focus E15 Posted: 15 Jun 2015 02:17 AM PDT
‘We are writing on behalf of Focus E15 campaign in support of the single residents in the Focus E15 hostel in Victoria Street, E15, who are in a very unsettling and frightening period with respect to the future of their housing situation. ‘The 99 young people left in Focus E15 foyer are being told that they have to move out in the next few months. They have visited Lyn Brown, MP, Terry Paul, councillor, have met with people from the council and from East Thames and of course are in contact with their support workers. They are being pushed from pillar to post, getting mixed messages and no answers. Many of the residents struggle with depression and anxiety, which is made worse by the lack of proper support in what is meant to be supported housing for vulnerable young people. ‘Currently every time a young person does move out of Focus E15 foyer they are not replaced. Instead families or older residents, who are told to pay more rent for the same size room, to a different landlord are being moved in. Is East Thames trying to wash their hands of all the vulnerable young people at the hostel? ‘At a recent Move On meeting, the young residents were told to look for properties in the privately-rented sector, but the only landlords they found who will accept DSS also want a guarantor who earns over £35,000. None of the young residents have contact with such a person. The young people in Focus E15 foyer do not have family that they can go back to. ‘They have been told that without full housing benefit they can only expect to have a room in a shared house with people they don't know. The background experiences of most of the young people in Focus E15, housed there due to previous difficulties and need for support, means that they feel very anxious about the concept of living with strangers. With the upper limit being £73 a week, it is almost impossible to find somewhere in Newham and they face the frightening alternative of having to move miles away from all support and familiarity. ‘We are asking East Thames and Newham council to work together to find an urgent acceptable solution to the housing plight of these young vulnerable people from Focus E15 foyer. They want to move their lives forward in a positive way, they want to live independently. They want to be in training or employment. ‘We know that East Thames prides itself on providing social housing and that Newham council has empty properties that should be opened up and used for housing. ‘We look forward to hearing from you, ‘Focus E15 campaign organising committee.’ This is the text of an open letter being sent to Yvonne Arrowsmith, chief executive of East Thames; Terry Paul, councillor, Stratford; Lyn Brown, MP for West Ham; Florence Bangboye housing officer ; and Robin Wales, Mayor of Newham. If you feel like emailing any of these people to ask them to help the Focus E15 residents by sorting out the empty housing so that people in Newham – or indeed any part of London – can stay in the area near their friends and places of study or work, please do. And today, 15 June, there will be a demonstration outside the Focus E15 hostel, Brimstone House, Victoria Street, Stratford, E15 4NX at 1.45pm to draw attention to calls for Newham Council and East Thames Housing Association to rehouse all the young people in the hostel who are facing an insecure future. Give them a secure future; when they are safely housed they can do what they want to do – settle down and train for their futures, which will in turn help ours. Or put another way: would you like your daughter to be sent to some sub-standard housing in a strange city to live with strangers? No.  |
| Self-harm cases soaring in young women Posted: 15 Jun 2015 02:08 AM PDT
Worldwide, over 800,000 people die each year from suicide. And according to a recent report from the 'World Health Organisation (WHO), Preventing Suicide: A Global Imperative', it is the second leading cause of death in young people aged 15 to 29 years old and it has replaced maternal mortality as the leading cause of death in young women throughout the world. In the UK, the overall suicide rates per 100,000 in 2012 were 2.6 for women and 9.8 for men. But because of the nature of suicide, including the stigma attached and difficulties in reporting incidents, it is believed that for each person who dies by suicide there could be over 20 other attempts. The UK’s rates of self-harm for women far outweigh those for men, and in the number of young women who are self-harming is on the rise. Although someone who self-harms may not wish to take their life, people who self-harm are at significant risk of suicide. The BBC recently reported that in Wales the rates of self-harming in young people aged 10 to 19 is the highest it has been in five years, with girls and young women four times more likely to self harm than boys and young men. And according to the Mental Health Foundation, the UK has some of the highest rates of self-harm in Europe. Yet despite these statistics, suicide and self-harm are both low public health priorities. A report from the Mental Health Foundation, 'The Fundamental Facts: The Latest Facts on Mental Health' has presented some shocking statistics on mental health, self-harm and suicide in the UK. For example, although British men are three times more likely than women to kill themselves, women are more likely than men to attempt suicide. And young Asian women are three times more likely to commit suicide than their white counterparts. Women in prison are at high risk of self-harm. In 2003, although women only made up six per cent of the prison population, they accounted for nearly half – 46 per cent – of self-harm incidents. Female carers are also more at risk of anxiety or depression than women in the general population. The Mental Health Foundation reports that in 2003, 75 per cent of people who cared for someone with a mental health issue were women. The Mental Health Foundation also cites research that strongly suggests 'community empowerment, provision of social services, tolerance and strong community networks' significantly protect mental health outcomes. The data shows that there is a clear-cut gender gap in mental health, but there is no definitive answer to what is clearly a complex set of issues. Gender discrimination undoubtedly plays a part, as does access to social services, mental health issues, social economic factors, and a myriad of other reasons such as peer pressure in teenagers and the impact of the pervasive accessibility of pornography. It would be tempting to 'join the dots' and offer simplistic solutions. However, this data clearly warrants more research into understanding and prevention of self-harm and suicide across the board.  |
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