Prince William calls for 'systemic change' to end homelessness in the UK

The Prince of Wales has called for a movement that creates "systemic change" to end homelessness in the UK

During an evening recognising the remarkable triumphs of young individuals conquering homelessness, The Prince of Wales advocated for transformative collective action to tackle the persistent issue across the UK. His Royal Highness expressed the sentiments at a Kensington Palace awards event held by Centrepoint, a charity combating homeless which he patronises, and presented by broadcaster Claudia Winkleman on Wednesday.

The Prince was notably moved by the achievements acknowledged that evening, saying: "I am inspired by the ambition and commitment of all the award winners and nominees this evening. You should all be incredibly proud of yourselves."

Commending the resilience and contribution of the youth present, he added: "What inspires me the most about the young people here this evening, is that they have not only overcome homelessness to achieve their personal ambitions, but they are also all contributing to the communities in which they live... be that through teaching, fundraising or volunteering."

Emphasising his conviction that homelessness can indeed be eradicated, William professed: "While homelessness is of course a complex societal issue, I passionately believe that it can, and should, be ended."

He called for the creation of "a movement that creates systemic change" and one that "focuses on prevent rather than management" while ensuring "ensures all young people have truly affordable options to live and thrive independently".

He expressed, "I am delighted that Centrepoint is already making significant headway on this vision. Their work testing innovative solutions such as Upstream Prevention and the Independent Living Programme are examples of how we can create the necessary change to end youth homelessness. " "I know that many of you here in this room are making that change possible. You are helping to improve the lives of future generations. We must remain optimistic by the progress that we see and the stories of success we hear."

"But to achieve the level of systemic change needed to end youth homelessness in the UK, there is still so much more to do."

"If you have been inspired by the young people you will meet this evening, then please think about what it is that you can do to bring change in your communities to ultimately end youth homelessness for good."

"We will only be successful in bringing about that change, if we work together."

The Homewards project was introduced by the prince last year, aiming to establish a model for ending homelessness comprehensively – making it rare, brief and unrepeated. The five-year scheme has seen the formation of Homewards teams across six UK spots – Newport, Lambeth, Belfast, Aberdeen, Sheffield and also encompassing three adjacent towns in Dorset, Poole, Bournemouth and Christchurch – focused on creating targeted solutions for locality-specific challenges.

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