Young adult care leavers are nine times more likely to become homeless than their peers, the charity Become is warning. In a report published this week, the group found that approximately 9.13% of care leavers aged 18-25 were statutorily assessed as being homeless or facing homelessness last year.

The charity also said in its report that had seen “really worrying examples” of young people feeling forced to leave social care before they were ready to find housing. It said that in some local authorities “the priority given to care leavers was greatest at the point of them leaving care and taking up their first tenancy”.

The charity also added in its report: “We know that the number of care leavers who receive a statutory homeless duty are just the tip of the iceberg and beyond these statistics are many more who are ‘hidden homeless’.”

Earlier this month, the government published statistics that showed 4,300 care leavers between 18 and 20 years old were owed a homelessness duty by their local authority in the year to the end of March 2024. This marked a 16% rise from the previous year period, which saw 3,710 care leavers owed the duty.