'People are getting killed out there' - Youth emergency centre prepares to open

The first stage of an Auckland 24-hour youth emergency centre is opening its doors to the public next week.

The idea behind the project, called Kick Back, would be a first in the country.

It belongs to youth worker Aaron Hendry and his wife, Summer, who dug into their own pockets to start building a service that would offer wraparound support for young people sleeping rough, including 24/7 accommodation.

The first stage of the opening celebrated the milestone of having found a place for the pilot, Hendry said.

"There was a lot of walking, talking, and meeting different landlords as we were just trying to find the right place, within what we could afford.

"When we saw it, my wife and I looked at it and realised, 'This is it, this is the right spot' - and it just felt right."

The centre on Karangahape Road in central Auckland - which opened on 13 May - would allow young people to drop in and be connected with youth workers straight away.

"For [this first stage] there will be a day where young people can drop in and there'll be a range of services there from legal to health, support with MSD, financial and housing support.

"It's just the beginning, so it will be about putting ourselves out there and becoming that sort of central hub where a young person who needs support knows they have a place to go."

The project was part of Hendry's new youth charity Kick Back.

"People are getting killed out there"

The majority of staff on The Front Door project were rangatahi with lived experience on the streets.

Te Kahukoka-Rose Harawira Yelash, 22, was one of them.

"I was 13 when I first experienced homelessness. At that time, I had just run away from foster care.

"I remember bumping into a few girls at a Massey bus stop. We became close when I told them my story and a few hours later, we were in someone's house eating all their food and boosting it [stealing from it] before they got home.

"I chuckle when I think about it, because the person I am now is way different from the person I was back then."

Harawira Yelash said the Hendrys' project would help tackle youth homelessness more effectively than current government initiatives.

"I got involved with this kaupapa, because I knew it would help put a roof over someone's head, but also because it's something that I wish I had growing up.

"[The Front Door] will bring a sense of belonging to those who are struggling to find themselves; it will give them an opportunity to see beyond the box that they have been put in."

Frankie, whose surname RNZ agreed not to publish, was also on the project's team.

He was homeless at 13 and said he joined The Front Door to make sure other young people did not go through the same experience.

"I wish we could have had that when we were growing up, because I wish I had someone that could [have] helped me to get in a place [like The Front Door].

"The street is nowhere for rangatahi to be on because there are people getting killed out there."

Hendry said the core of the project was to give a voice to young people.

"They'll continue to guide and direct us as we grow, [helping us] on how we build the right service to meet the needs of our young people in crisis.

"And who better to say that than young people themselves, who've lived it?"

"Not the full kit yet"

Over the first couple of weeks, they would be connecting with the community and offering a first point of contact to rangatahi on the streets, the youth worker said.

"In this first step, [we are] creating a space where young people can come, they can drop in, they can feel safe and supported and we can start to get through the work of what they need.

"It's not the full kit yet, but it's the first step."

The aspirations for the project were high, he said.

"What we're working toward is ensuring that there's a GP working from inside of The Front Door, that there will be mental health services, addiction services, legal aid, housing advocacy.

"We are working to ensure that young people have that when they turn up."

The youth worker said the project was about working in partnership with other providers to centralise their services in the support hub.

The place was not yet capable of offering 24/7 accommodation for youth - a first in the country - but that was the end goal, Hendry said.

"We still have the big dream and the big vision of creating that."

Since the project was announced last year, Auckland Council had offered support to keep it going.

"They've supported us in terms of funding... That support enabled us to recruit and bring in some kaimahi, bring the youth workers to come and do the job.

"It's really cool to be working alongside Auckland Council to proactively address some of the concerns the community has, whether it's around safety of young people, or what's going on in our community.

Hendry said overwhelming support for the project had also come from the public and from social enterprise Mana Services.