Contents:
Particulars relate to accompanying paginated PDF provided to Dorset Healthcare NHS Trust.
Regarding the Service User group/beneficiary audience. Page 10
Notes for Healthcare Professionals and for Admin teams regarding ethnic minority and international community members engagement. Page 11
PART B: Specific medical support intervention related
NOTES
Introduction
a) support services that are ineffective or inappropriate, and poorly joined up
b) Other factors complicating clear effective mental healthcare diagnosis and interventions
6. Related services and signposting outside of DHC/the NHS. Page 30
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Preface:
As a prologue and a preface, regarding the value and utilisation of this educational resource for NHS healthcare professionals, the LGBT+ Network for Change is pleased to confirm that the particulars, approach, and purpose of the resource directly supports and enhances the crucially important client/patient self-help dynamic that underpins the extremely successful policy and strategy of NHS IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies) services.
IAPT services are particularly important in tackling the debilitating mental health conditions of anxiety and depression [caused by rejection, ineffective engagement with coming ‘Out,’ bullying, discrimination, and prejudice of minor to life-threatening level kinds]; these being central to most underlying poor mental health experienced by LGBT+ community members, and most of all LGBTQ+ community members, especially the young (spanning CAMHS and CMHT NHS services).
The NHS UK, Health Education England (HEE), Mental Health Foundation (MHF), and Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health, links below give context to this alignment of the Network resource with NHS IAPT delivery, with the resource’s particulars enhancing directly the NHS health care professionals tools for confidence and knowledge where LGBT+ clients, IAPT implementation in actual cases, is concerned. The Network is aware as well that where LGBT context IAPT therapies delivery is concerned, the type of essential real-life client cases support detailed particulars our resource provides, are often lacking, and even the excellent but more conceptional-type information some of the links below provide, do not take the NHS healthcare professional (especially counsellors and therapists) over the confidence level line they seek and need to cross.
IAPT related links:
Help for mental health problems if you’re LGBTQ – NHS: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/advice-for-life-situations-and-events/mental-health-support-if-you-are-gay-lesbian-bisexual-lgbtq/
Types of talking therapy – NHS: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/talking-therapies-medicine-treatments/talking-therapies-and-counselling/types-of-talking-therapies/
Health Education England (HEE) ‘Adult Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT)’: https://www.hee.nhs.uk/our-work/mental-health/improving-access-psychological-therapies
The Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health – ‘CYP-IAPT – Where next?’: https://www.acamh.org/research-digest/cyp-iapt/
Mental health statistics: LGBTIQ+ people | Mental Health Foundation: https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/statistics/mental-health-statistics-lgbtiq-people
Mental Health Foundation joins the call for ‘Acts of Allyship’ with all LGBT+ people | Mental Health Foundation: https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/news/mental-health-foundation-joins-call-acts-allyship-all-lgbt-people
One of the core fundamentals underlying the more general and more acute types of poor mental health LGBTQ+ community members in particular encounter – the intolerance of LGBT people and LGBT identities factor that exists where some forms of organised, dogmatic religions are concerned – can be a problem for the NHS in regard to healthcare practitioners. As in some cases the latter may be attached to the perspectives and influences of such forms of religious faith that ultimately, naturally involve ethics (and often directly spiritual) related soul-searching that not every healthcare professional or follower of a religious faith, is ready to engage in.
Such realities can mean that it is for such NHS healthcare professionals, regarding their own good mental health as well as efficaciousness in regard to taking up LGBT clients cases, and utilising IAPT therapies, necessary that they do not engage with such cases: this of course relates to the phenomenon of de-facto conversion therapy.
The latter is covered in this resource at its more generic/general anti-LGBT inculcating de-facto indoctrination level, rather than in its direct manifestations. The latter infamous for destroying many LGBT community lives through extreme mental health harm and suicides, such as most notorious of all the driving to suicide of one of the UK’s most famous patriots, of world renown and world history shaping fame, Alan Turing.
In Turing’s case his form of ‘Conversion Therapy’ involved being forced to be chemically castrated [a medieval level brutality] which ultimately led to his suicide by taking cyanide (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Turing#:~:text=In%201952%2C%20he%20was%20convicted,with%20cyanide%2C%20aged%20just%2041.).
In the case of LGBT+ homelessness and risk of homelessness mental health harm example (which transcends the before and after 18 years of age threshold) – mental health harms to BAME/BME, especially younger BAME/BME LGBT+ [and most of all] LGBTQ+ community members — the manifestations are characteristically highly complex, with complications and multiple mental health problems being understandably more the norm than exception.
For this reason we believe that tackling the core causes and manifestations of the primary poor mental health conditions (anxiety and depression especially) is the only solid effective approach to take, and in this the details & considerations we have provided in this resource, allied to valuable supportive articles, studies, and in particular signposting and most of all client self-study links substantially enhances LGBT+ context IAPT delivery.
Alan Mercel-Sanca
Information resource creator,
Lead Officer and Educational Services Provider,
LGBT+ Network for Change
PART A: General
- Introduction – About the Community, and Why the Resource is Needed:
Image/statistics source: https://vervlondon.com/about_akt-2/
As the visual above indicates, the younger homeless community has a disproportionate 3.5 to 4 times percentage of the total younger homeless population (approximately early teens to mid-thirties. Concerning the age group, this includes from at risk of homelessness earliest age range — 10 – 14 — to peak age where risk of the latter exists, being 15 – 17+.
Why we denominate the LGBTQ+ community rather than LGBT+ community:
As all familiar with LGBT community, the single most important life event and life shaping factor concerns whether or not one comes ‘Out’ to oneself (becomes self-identifying and self-affirming) as LGBT+. Being Out/self-identifying (this is Not the same necessarily as being Out to others) constitutes the single most powerful factor in enabling positive/strong good mental health. The ‘Q’ in the LGBTQ+ acronym signifies ‘Questioning’ – in other words community members enroute to coming ‘Out’ to themselves/self-identifying as LGBT+ but who have not yet completed this crucial journey. As such ‘Questioning’ individuals are still subject to conversion therapy type anti-LGBT defaming influences, and lacking possession of full, balanced facts and knowledge to complete their journey.
Homeless / at risk of homeless / Sofa Surfing:
LGBTQ+ homelessness and sofa surfing – life-saving decision rather than an option/choice:
In regard to all three of the categories below, it is important from a mental health and mental healthcare services perspective to emphasise that whilst all three can naturally emerge in family and parental or societal group background contexts, ultimately the decision to become homeless or consider becoming homeless is based on even more ‘do or die’ considerations of reaction to extreme danger: suicide or permanently severe and scarring mental ill health as certainties (including being tortured and/or murdered through for example ‘exorcisms’) to be avoided at all costs.
The homeless LGBTQ+ community comprises approximately a quarter of the total homeless community population, and particularly high negative mental health impacting dimensions linked to prejudice and family/parental socio-cultural group rejection. To date (early 2022) in the UK there is still minimal dedicated LGBTQ+ and LGBT appropriate support in place by local authorities, mainstream homeless charities, the NHS, and accommodation providers. The largest section of the community are the hidden homeless, especially ‘sofa surfers.’
The at risk of homelessness community:
This particular community is by definition largely an invisible one, unless a community member presents to the NHS directly or to an LGBT homeless charity such as Albert Kennedy Trust (AKT), or a college or school safeguarding officer, or LGBT youth support & social group. The at risk of homelessness experience is unique for its population is in the most vulnerable of all positions as still living with those that unknown or overtly are harming the community member through conversion therapy type behaviour and mindsets, bullying and oppression abuses; as such members of this population can be particularly susceptible to suicide and suicidal ideation, and nascent extreme mental health disorders (Borderline Personality Disorder in its formative stage, etc.)
More on the ‘Sofa Surfing’ community:
The sofa surfing LGBTQ+ community is commonly known to be at least three times larger than the rough sleeper and homeless refuges community. As with the at risk of homelessness it is also essentially an invisible community. It is one in which the LGBT+ journey of coming Out/Self-Identification is likely to be completed due to living in LGBT milieus, but this can be imperfect with many defects caused by the complications and vulnerabilities unique to sofa surfing (sexual exploitation/abuse, absence of an equal-basis loving relationship, proximity to drugs scene involvement dangers, etc.).
For information on the instability, mental health harming common experience of LGBT sofa surfers: http://www.powertopersuade.org.au/blog/couch-surfing-limbo-your-life-stops-when-they-say-you-have-to-find-somewhere-else-to-go/28/11/2016
Essentiality of a de-facto ‘Ally’ approach: Becoming and being a de-facto ‘Ally’ (https://guidetoallyship.com/) and doing so through the medium of achieving a comprehension and empathy base through study and listening, of a ‘lived experience’ insightful kind, is the start point for those providing effective mental health services.
Clarity on the client profile: You can be homeless and heterosexual, you can be homeless and gay, you can be bilingual and French/Irish, etc. Such an approach must be avoided as it entirely misses the fundamental cause and effect dynamic of the experience of being gay, lesbian, trans, and to some extent bisexual, and becoming homeless for exclusively adverse reaction to sexual orientation and/or gender identity revelation or self-identification reasons.
‘ … On the other hand, the research showed an overwhelmingly positive impact for those who did access frontline services, such as key workers. However, some young people interviewed also reported instances of less positive interactions with both staff and clients of homeless services. …’
Source: https://gcn.ie/lgbt-youth-homelessness-ireland/
The above words from a recent Republic of Ireland (University College Dublin) context in its first sentence indicates the experience and outcome this resource has been created to enable. In the second sentence though a particularly important obstacle to that is indicated and is dealt with in the appropriate points in this information resource: it is an experience that in the direct knowledge through involvement in consultations, forums, and especially direct homeless community advocacy cases, the creator of this information resource can in regard to the Bournemouth area especially, state as accurate.
The experience of the LGBTQ+ homeless community regarding mental healthcare services and that of broader non-mental healthcare, homeless community support organisations [from local authorities housing departments and social services, through to the vocational voluntary and community sector] can be sometimes excellent, but in many others, depressing, confusing, and less than LGBTQ+ appropriate/sensitive.
- Using the resource – and who is it for?:
The resource is for two particular audiences: both healthcare professionals and frontline admin staff, linked to the following programmes and resources:
Steps to Wellbeing (S2W)
CAMHS – for children and those under 18
CHMT – for those who are 18+
Also:
- Specialist psychiatric disorders clinics and clinicians
- It is also of secondary or tertiary level use for services (these may dependent on the particular client case be referred to from the main programme/service listed above) alcohol related, drugs related, sexual health related clinics
- Over The Rainbow NHS services (run by and for LGBT+ community members, and supported by Dorset Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust): mainly sexual health services orientated but including counselling services too THAT CAN BE A START POINT for referral to the main Dorset Healthcare mental health support services above: https://rainbowdorset.co.uk/about-otr/
The resource is thematic so individual sections are valuable for those in need of information on those topics. However, the resource — which also includes an accompanying 1-2 page information sheet – topics have been chosen for their importance and interconnectedness. As such maximum benefit is gained from studying the resource in it’s entirety at least once, albeit afterwards depending on the case or a line of study, research, and reflection, individual section(s) may be of greater importance.
- Overview of mental health services support need-to-know relevant background information on the Service User group/beneficiary audience:
For the considerations given below an individual client care package of main and support service interventions, dependent on the individual’s mental health and other particulars, is advised as the only approach that will deliver the goal of substantial mental health improvement with the ultimate objective of wherever possible the client’s mental health and general health improving to a point where care is no longer required.
A ‘one size fits all / tick box’ approach is therefore Not to be considered as this oversimplifies the task and ultimate goal referred to that the healthcare professional has, as well as the client.
It is essential for NHS healthcare professionals to be aware of both LGBTQ+ homeless and sofa surfing community members:
a) core causative factors (parental/family rejection, etc.) that have resulted in experience of or risk of homelessness and sofa surfing
b) potential heavy to excessive alcohol consumption, and involvement in drugs taking (including in some instances multiple altered states of mind Chemsex), survival sex, and sexual victimisation, and
c) impacts of poor quality and non-joined up services outside of mental healthcare support
Most important of all, the progress or lack of progress on the self-identification (Coming ‘Out’ to oneself) central need and challenge for LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness and sofa surfing must never be lost sight of in advising support mental health services. In regard to this exacerbating factors for the service users must be born in mind: such as proximity to anti-LGBT forces of mind control or free-thought disruption (and that these may include ‘homeless support’ contexts that have traditionally been dominated by in the West religious organisations/charities that LGBTQ+ community members will be likely because of the latter’s public prominence, exposed to.
Proximity/regular contact of community clients with such organisations/charities – that still have a disproportionate influence in the homeless support sector – will have an understandably at best holding back from full self-identification as LGBT+ for those clients, and at worst expose the latter to conversion therapy type influences and mechanisms on a daily basis. Secular homeless support organisations/charities, and especially those that have ‘Google search’ solid credentials as LGBTQ+ appropriate/friendly/safe, by contrast are important to recommend.
- Notes for Healthcare Professionals and for Admin teams regarding ethnic minority and international community members engagement:
Image/statistics source: https://vervlondon.com/about_akt-2/
As indicated by the visual above, 59% of young LGBTQ+ homeless are from ethnic minority/BAME/BME/international backgrounds. This finding is replicated time and again by other research, and will be often found in NHS mental healthcare services approaches.
This section of the resource because of the scale and the distinctness of this major section of the LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness community, requires specific information on the core BAME/ethnic minorities community as without this NHS healthcare professionals will have much restricted ability to engage with members of the latter from that community.
VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: as a basic essential need-to-know fact, it is important to realise that for self-evident reasons the client may be averse to engaging with an NHS healthcare professional of the same ethnicity/culture/nationality! Either the healthcare professional needs to be from a different ethnicity/culture/nationality (ideally non-BAME,) or, before any appointment the client has, if this be with a healthcare professional of the same ethnicity/culture/nationality, that the latter have a thorough BAME/ethnic minorities community LGBT and LGBTQ+ ‘Ally’ perspective and knowledge brief, and share this with the client.
Refugees: in some cases LGBTQ+ AND LGBT+ homeless community members seeking NHS mental healthcare services support in a homeless or risk of homelessness context will be LGBT context refugees. THESE CLIENTS HAVE ADDITIONAL – to the main BAME/ethnic minorities homeless & at risk of homelessness community – TRAUMA RELATED SUPPORT NEEDS. These due to the circumstances of fleeing their land of origin due to their LGBT contexts, and sadly the nature of de-facto UK Home Office ‘hostile environment’ minimal support for day to day living circumstances and needs.
The starting point for this section of the resource is provided immediately below. The links given enable NHS healthcare professionals to learn about the position of overseas countries – and by extension some trans-national cultures (such as particularly religion and religious creed) – in regard to acceptance of to extreme, violent, deadly enmity towards LGBT communities.
The following link is a valuable starting point for awareness of the international dimension: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-43822234
Importance of extreme anti-LGBT cultures fearing the phenomena of Allies and Allyship: Gay and transgender people could be sentenced to up to five years in prison while “allies” could be jailed for a decade under legislation being voted on in Ghana. Link: https://www.theweek.co.uk/96298/the-countries-where-homosexuality-is-still-illegal
Two links to assist healthcare professional on knowing of entrenched anti-LGBT nations/countries:
The factor of cultures (BAME) – the BAME LGBT+ homeless dimension:
Regarding ethnic minority communities cultures that through family & parental contexts are for many BAME LGBT+ community members core reasons for their decisions to flee home and often their given BAME community society, due to prejudice, threat of in some cases forced heterosexual arranged marriages, and inability of such families and societies to accept non-heterosexuality and non-binary/cisgender identities. The links below indicate this factor and illustrate community members experiences.
The section concludes with some advised directions for clients support.
Whilst most of the core White indigenous English, Scottish, Welsh, Northern Irish UK community (with some exceptions) is largely at a culture and societal norms level, a substantially secular inclusive values orientated one, the picture is still largely different for BAME communities, especially first and second generation and older members and those with minimal English language skills, where LGBT+ inclusion and equality is concerned.
The reasons for this being greater continuing and deeper attachment to religion-orientated perspectives and the role of religion in daily lives, coupled with to some extent cultural factors beyond religious beliefs adherence. For these reasons there is a disproportionately great number of homeless BAME LGBTs, and of course MSMs (and WSWs), and BAME LGBTs suffering from anti-LGBT related poor mental health and at greater risk of suicide with an NHS that often has poor BAME LGBT issues and support need services provision or awareness and training.
Some traditional BAME cultures perspectives on gender equality/inequality in particular deepen the issues involved where male same-sex love in particular is seen as a threat.
Black LGBT+ Young People Hit Hardest By Covid Mental Health Crisis – ‘The pandemic presents “the biggest risk to the mental health of LGBT+ young people since Section 28,” LGBT+ youth charity Just Like Us said … ‘ Just Like Us website: https://www.justlikeus.org/about
My boyfriend killed himself because his family couldn’t accept that he was gay — https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/mar/21/my-boyfriend-killed-himself-because-his-family-couldnt-accept-that-he-was-gay
Battyboy must die! Dancehall, class and religion in Jamaican homophobia — https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1367549420951578
Christian Missions and Anti-Gay Attitudes in Africa — https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/research/groups/nicep/documents/working-papers/2020/nicep-2020-04.pdf
Islamic homophobia — https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/islamic-tv-channel-anti-gay-homophobic-ofcom-rules-a9017056.html
Pan- South Asian LGBT organisation: https://britishasianlgbti.org/coming-out/
Sarbat – UK Sikh LGBT+ support organisation: http://www.sarbat.net/ + https://www.facebook.com/lgbtsikh/
Imaan — The UK’s leading LGBTQ Muslim Charity: https://imaanlondon.wordpress.com/
Hidayah — https://www.hidayahlgbt.com/resources
Jewish LGBT Community — https://www.keshetuk.org/otherorgs.html
Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement — https://www.bishopsgate.org.uk/collections/lesbian-and-gay-christian-movement
International:
For knowledge of nations and related ethnicities positions on LGBT inclusion OR anti-LGBT prejudice and persecution: https://www.equaldex.com/
Thematic subjects covered country by country by Equaldex:
- Homosexuality
- Gay Marriage
- Censorship
- Changing Gender
- Non-binary gender recognition
- Discrimination
- Employment Discrimination
- Housing Discrimination
- Adoption
- Military
- Conversion Therapy
- Donating Blood
- Age of Consent
PART B: Specific medical support intervention related
- Introduction
Following from the Part A section introduction, community profile information, the starting point for providing mental healthcare support to clients from the community, has to commence with awareness of the real life contexts that form the basis of why LGBTQ+ community members take the brave and in some cases desperate/last resort step of contacting the NHS for mental healthcare support resulting from their extreme personal circumstances relating to homelessness, sofa surfing, and risk of both the latter.
Awareness by healthcare professionals [and admin staff] of this seeking professional help context provides the starting point for consideration of what support needs the client will detail.
The Primary issue to be addressed is effective ‘debriefing’ for the client/service user on the negative mental health impacts experienced by the latter on the start of the dark journey of being driven from or having to flee their original family context home, through to mental health and self-identification as LGB or T at the point of becoming homeless and/or accessing DHC services
- General counselling related support – overview:
NOTE: as an introduction to this section please see first PART A Section 3 above.
As mentioned in section 1. of this, Part B, section of the resource the general counselling dimension of support services provided by the relevant NHS programmes and services (Steps 2 Wellbeing, CAMHS, and CHMT) in regard to our LGBTQ+ homeless (including sofa surfing) and at risk of homelessness communities support has, by definition, major general counselling onus.
This support concentrating on both mitigation of commonly very destabilising mental health harm (the word ‘harm’ is essential to use given the particulars of experience the community members have) and recognition that support given will relate NOT to community members being LGBTQ+ BUT LGBTQ+ members encountering extreme prejudice and very personal rejection by parents, family members, and friends on the basis of being or assumed to be, or suspected of being LGB or T.
As such, DHC healthcare professionals will need to be aware of the very well-documented and authoritatively researched (academic, healthcare, and other) evidence of the factors causing parental/family/friends and given community-society (particularly important in the case of many of our ethnic minority/BAME/BME LGBT community members) rejection and prejudice-related enmity expressed to their LGBTQ+ sons/daughters/brothers/sisters/ friends. Without this background context knowledge, empathy, diagnosis, safe and effective supporting sign-posting and self-help/self-study assistance will simply Not be possible.
Essentially in almost all instances, the background contexts to the extreme manifestations of homophobia, bi-phobia, and transphobia have particular forms of particular religions and related socio-cultural contexts. As such this section and the next (3) interconnect.
Gaining trust: this is as all mental healthcare services healthcare professionals know is the basis for effective diagnosis and subsequent remedial interventions. It is especially the case where LGBT and LGBTQ+ clients and especially LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness clients are concerned.
- De-facto ‘anti-LGBT indoctrination & brainwashing and Conversion Therapy’ related experiences of clients – assistance support to the latter on debriefing concerning their personal contexts that caused homelessness and risk of homelessness:
Conversion Therapy in all its forms can and does take multiple forms with children and youth (minors) in circumstances of parental, school, societal religious related regular/daily influence settings being the main target group.
For example the Network intervened on and had knowledge of a religious denominational [Christian] school in South Dorset de-facto conversion therapy incident, which spoke of a much broader phenomenon: ‘if we have any gay pupil we will educate their gayness out of them’ – the headteacher of the Christian school.
Please also see where the Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC) stands on its definitions of why Conversion Therapy is ethically and medical profession, unacceptable: https://www.hcpc-uk.org/globalassets/consultations/2022/hcpc-response-to-government-equalities-office-consultation-on-banning-conversion-therapy-in-england-and-wales—feb-2022.pdf?v=637805160050000000
Channel 4 News valuable and damning report and video concerning ‘Conversion Therapy’ https://www.channel4.com/news/the-impact-of-gay-conversion-therapy-on-mental-health-in-uk — The impact of gay conversion therapy on mental health in UK
Stonewall description of and position on Conversion Therapy, with special reference to health and social care providers:
‘No one should be told their identity is something that can be cured.
Yet many lesbian, gay, bi and trans people are being poorly treated by health and social care services, including by staff who believe that sexual orientation or gender identity is something that can be ‘cured’.
On the basis of this and wider evidence, we are calling for central government to publicly condemn this practice and take further steps to ensure the practice is unavailable.
We are also calling for health and social care leaders and regulators to communicate a clear message to psychotherapists and counsellors that trying to ‘cure’ lesbian, gay, bi and trans people is both harmful and dangerous.’
Source: https://www.stonewall.org.uk/campaign-groups/conversion-therapy
‘Conversion therapy is the pseudoscientific practice of trying to change an individual’s sexual orientation from homosexual or bisexual to heterosexual using psychological, physical, or spiritual interventions. There is no reliable evidence that sexual orientation can be changed and medical institutions warn that conversion therapy practices are ineffective and potentially harmful. Medical, scientific, and government organizations in the United States and United Kingdom have expressed concern over the validity, efficacy and ethics of conversion therapy. Various jurisdictions around the world have passed laws against conversion therapy. …’
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conversion_therapy
‘… Part of the reason for the vast diversity in experiences of change efforts is due to the fact that modern science has so thoroughly rejected the practice, so there is no accredited training for mental health professionals on how to attempt to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. That also means there is no ethical standard of care for doing so.
Especially for faith-based providers, conversion therapy often involves teachings pulled from religious texts, prayer, spiritual discipline, and practices modeled off of twelve-step programs targeting “sexual brokenness,” “unwanted same-sex attractions,” or “gender confusion.”’
NOTE: whilst ‘Conversion Therapy’ is a multiple forms explicitly anti-LGBT ‘educational’ intervention made in almost all cases by and through religious agencies – mainly/almost always applied to children and youth / minors that have little say or no rights in regard to the conversion therapy interventions they have practised on them — the term is a practical working definition takes many forms without these being formally defined as ‘Conversion Therapies.’
Why is youth LGBT homelessness still happening, is homophobia at the root of most cases?
‘ … I would say homophobia is absolutely the root of the vast majority of cases we come across. Faith can also be a big driver, and that’s tied very intrinsically to homophobia. A lot of the young people we saw last year said that abuse and rejection from their family was a major cause of their homelessness – and that’s very strongly tied to homophobia. …
Is it sometimes difficult for the team on an emotional level?
It can be. I’m meeting young people almost daily. You get to know these people and their circumstances. It can be jaw-dropping at times. When you hear people’s problems, a natural reaction is to put yourself in their place; I certainly couldn’t deal with any of the issues with the grace and humility that a lot of our young people do. It’s difficult not to become emotionally involved, but we have to make sure we’re giving those young people the support they need and deserve …’
Source: https://www.fyne.co.uk/lgbt-youth-homelessness-and-the-albert-kennedy-trust/
Please also see this excellent article in the Big Issue: https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/my-parents-tried-to-pray-for-me-how-prejudice-is-driving-lgbtq-homelessness/
‘Conversion Therapy’ is a term that in recent years has increasingly emerged into the consciousness of the general public, government and politicians, and is increasingly becoming apparent as a phenomenon that impacts significantly in regard to some areas of mental healthcare provision.
In reality conversion therapy constitutes a very real type of ‘rape’ of its target where their personality and individuality taking shape are concerned; it is certainly one of the more cruel forms of invasive abuse, and it is necessary for the healthcare professional to be under no delusions where this is concerned. Otherwise they have little capability to connect with the client, especially around the major trauma dimension of conversion therapy.
Standing back from the term ‘conversion therapy’ in effect one is dealing with the ages old phenomena of indoctrination and brainwashing – and of course through them, bullying — to achieve a particular effect at a personal and societal level.
Essentially the contexts are certain strands of inflexible [of the human being and their individuality] dogmatic, exclusivist fundamentalist religions (NOT all religions, for not a few, including amongst the most ancient hold perspectives that recognise the validity of same-sex love and of non-cisgender communities) making war on human nature where sexual orientation and gender self-identification are concerned (allied of course to a certain degree of enmity towards sex and sexual domains too).
There is of course nothing ‘therapeutic’ about this phenomenon which in practice is nothing more nor less than de-facto brainwashing of the vulnerable, essentially with few exceptions, minors that are under the power of adults that have particular views on how the latter – mainly children and youth – be by various insidious and powerful controlling of mind, of life, and day to day living (especially concerning who one can love and who one can and need to be) means. These realities are crucial for mental healthcare professionals in the NHS to be aware of in engaging with LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness clients. With this awareness optimisation of communication and engagement with the latter is made possible. Without that awareness communication and engagement are severely hampered.
Regarding LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness community members seeking NHS mental healthcare services support, the term captures the essence of the core/primary (and often secondary too) source of the factors that have led to fleeing or being forced out of families, family/parental homes, and in some cases (some BAME/ethnic minority) socio-cultural groups that have significant religion related foundation and characteristics.
Counteraction/debriefing particulars:
Starting from the basis of becoming a meaningful LGBTQ+ Ally and consequently comprehending in practical ways lived experience and real life contexts for daily living by LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness community members. With this approach the healthcare professional has the best possible basis for diagnosis and the right appropriate courses of action where interventions, such as counselling, etc are concerned.
It is important for the healthcare professional to recognise the particular interconnections between cause and effect from the outset and to realise that the main negative health manifestations for the client group will involve very real trauma, and commonly a sense of bereavement where fleeing or being forced out of the parental home is concerned.
In regard to both of the latter fleeing or being thrown out of the parental/family home constitutes a bereavement of the worst and most sudden kind, still extremely shocking despite being perhaps long foreseen. Complicating and exacerbating this are the factors of being regarded as deceitful and unloving to one’s family and parents, the practical as well as emotional and psychological disruption caused by sudden disconnection.
Signposting:
Signposting to dedicated secular (Albert Kennedy Trust, etc.), humanist, and community acknowledged LGBT led/dedicated religion related organisations (listed in PART A, Section 4 of this resource, will be invaluable as a support to healthcare professionals.
PLEASE ALSO SEE FOR BAME/ETHNIC MINORITY LGBTQ+ HOMELESS AND AT RISK OF HOMELESSNESS SIGNPOSTING SUPPORT in PART A Section 4 part of this resource
The main age group affected:
The main age group affected by de-facto ‘conversion therapy’ conduct/activity encompasses that of young children up to adolescents [particularly younger adolescents], and to some but a lessening extent young adults.
The means utilised in conversion therapy are as extensive as they are insidious. They are all grounded in making sure a child or youth complies with certain religious-based perspectives on acceptable and unacceptable life choices, especially in who one loves, and also how one presents oneself, attire chosen, etc. De-facto Conversion Therapy therefore most commonly occurs in the most formative years of mid-to late childhood, adolescence, and to some extent young adulthood when the individuality of a person is taking shape. Therefore it is essential that healthcare professionals avoid at all costs signposting to religious organisations that are not anything but unambiguously clear as LGBT+ & LGBTQ+ friendly/appropriate.
Debriefing from de-facto ‘Conversion Therapy’ — Solutions:
Helping the client to start their own journey (for self-ownership of the latter is essential for meaningful results to become realities) in realising that there are multiple different perspectives to that of homophobic, bi-phobic, transphobic dogmatic intolerant influences in parental/family settings that LGBTQ+ homeless – prior to becoming homeless – and those still in those settings and at tipping point (hence seeking NHS mental healthcare services) risk.
Given that the homelessness and risk of homelessness for LGBTQ+ community members contexts are commonly extreme patriarchal and accompanying misogynistic cultures and world views, derived from certain (BUT CERTAINLY NOT ALL) dogmatic religions that take their influences from formative periods in lands and societies where homophobia existed alongside extreme (not mild/moderate) patriarchal/male supremacist and misogynist values, it is most important for both clients and mental healthcare providers to be aware of this.
The reason this is very important is that extreme and even moderate anti-LGBT prejudice in the family/parental and socio-cultural group settings be seen NOT in isolation but as part of a much broader mental health harming context. IT IS SIGNIFICANT REGARDING THIS THAT IN THE CASE OF IRELAND, a traditionally de-facto highly phobic, patriarchal land influenced by a dogmatic religious culture THAT ADVANCES ON LGBT AND WOMENS HUMAN RIGHTS HAVE BEEN COMMONLY CLOSELY LINKED.
The most effective method of debriefing from de-facto conversion therapy/LGBT demonising indoctrination (that often commences in religious and religion/denominational primary schools in addition to family and socio-cultural settings) is to be aware that exist and have always existed religions, belief systems, and cultures that accept same-sex love and sexual orientation and non-cisgender gender self-identification, being pansexual, trans, non-binary, as part of Nature and humanity since the beginning of time. There are many resources of high quality on the internet and relevant bookshops that provide such information.
Here we provide some particulars that can be used as considerations for self-study by the client, and invaluable to the healthcare professional too:
Two Spirit [LGBT] Identities and their significance:
Although it may seem remote from an NHS patient consultation or appointment setting, the ‘Two Spirit’ concept of traditional indigenous, First Peoples of Nth America — and with parallels across most of the world in Shamanic and other spiritual cultures rejecting or unimpressed by the main world religions (especially those that take proselytising/evangelising, intolerant, fundamentalist, dogmatic forms which are the bedrock of anti-LGBT perspectives and homophobia, bi-phobia, transphobia) in regard to their in many cases estrangement from Nature, and wont of respect for the individuality, innate spirituality & courage of almost all members of humankind – has direct relevance to all in the West, including healthcare professionals. Through it the latter and us all are reminded that there is in fact a major, largely forgotten counter-narrative to religion-based homophobia, biphobia, transphobia.
The Two Spirit concept sees LGBT+ people as key parts of the human race and totality of the human experience. As such as the definition below indicates, LGBT / Two-Spirit peoples have the perceptivity and strengths of both binary genders. As such they have special powers at spiritual levels (such as the Trans community members known as Hijra in South Asia), and the Two Spirit concept explains why LGBT+ people have such disproportionate impacts and presence in the creative, and the caring (and this includes to some extent aspects of hospitality/travel sectors) fields. Two Spirits and therefore LGBTs commonly also therefore have greater levels of sensitivity, something deepened further from their experiences of often being persecuted minorities.
‘Native Americans have often held intersex, androgynous people, feminine males and masculine females in high respect. The most common term to define such persons today is to refer to them as “two-spirit” people, but in the past feminine males were sometimes referred to as “berdache” by early French explorers in North America, who adapted a Persian word “bardaj”, meaning an intimate male friend. Because these androgynous males were commonly married to a masculine man, or had sex with men, and the masculine females had feminine women as wives, the term berdache had a clear homosexual connotation. Both the Spanish settlers in Latin America and the English colonists in North America condemned them as “sodomites”.’
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/oct/11/two-spirit-people-north-america
Useful ‘Coming Out’ video link: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p057nfy7/olly-alexander-growing-up-gay?xtor=CS8-1000-[Discovery_Cards]-[Multi_Site]-[SL02]-[PS_IPLAYER~N~~P_OllyAlexander:GrowingUpGay]
Useful links refutations of the ages old ‘against Nature’ fallacy/argument deployed against children, youth and adults by anti-LGB communities by anti-LGBT religious/conversion therapy elements, from the realities of same-sex sexual interaction across countless animal species (500+ and counting):
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homosexual_behavior_in_animals
https://www.nhm.uio.no/besok-oss/utstillinger/skiftende/tidligere/againstnature/index-eng.html
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Against_Nature%3F
- More severe mental health conditions found within the LGBTQ+ homeless community:
1. This section of the resource and the preceding (3) and the next (5) directly interconnect
2. The core purpose of this information resource is to prevent and/or provide need-to-know information for healthcare professionals that will mitigate and/or effectively counteract the forces and factors that lead LGBTQ+ community members to be vulnerable to both homelessness and severe mental health conditions
The background factors causing LGBTQ+ homelessness in their own right give a solid basis for severe mental health conditions and very real risk of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts. Allied to these factors severe mental health conditions are intensified for such LGBTQ+ community members by the complicating factors that are detailed elsewhere in this information resource and especially in Section 5, below.
It is essential in regard to severe mental health conditions that LGBTQ+ community homeless AND at risk of homelessness communities members maybe and are commonly subject to, to at all costs avoid a ‘one size fits all’ approach – as this completely negates any opportunity to provide effective mental healthcare support, AND certainly will exacerbate even further the poor mental health conditions position of clients from the community.
Severe to active suicidal level depression, intense anxiety and stress are commonplace mental health conditions the LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness community experience on a daily 24 hrs a day basis.
Added to these grim good mental health destabilising realities, others crowd in for most of the members of this community from the complicating and exacerbating lived experiences and factors referred to, some of which in their own right can and do understandably cause extremely complex and harmful additional severe mental health repercussions.
Given these factors and particulars there can be little surprise that there is a very real susceptibility of not a few in the given community to be subject to Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) diagnosis, and/or at risk of BPD.
Concerning BPD and its causes please see Ireland’s Health Services Executive (HSE), NHS derived — Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) information :
HOWEVER, it is most important to stress that EVERY CLIENT CASE Must be approached from a diagnosis perspective on the basis that BPD does not necessarily exist as the multiple good mental health destabilising factors – detailed above and elsewhere in this information resource – indicate that multiple poor mental health distinct causative factors are likely to be present that taken together look like BUT ARE NOT BPD.
The following article on this important subject assist with clarification on BPD:
‘Borderline Personality Disorder and the LGB Population: Navigating Biases’ — Diagnostic models in mental health care are complicated and complex. When you factor in potential provider bias, a diagnosis may not always be accurate. Transdiagnostic models may offer a better way to assess lesbian, gay, and bisexual patient populations.
- Complicating factors:
It is essential for NHS healthcare professionals to be aware ahead of the initial appointment with a designated/flagged up LGBTQ+ homeless context client that the latter will in many, perhaps in almost all cases, have very real mental health burdens that extend beyond those of the original causative factors that led to homelessness and/or risk of homelessness. Beyond the latter there exist secondary complicating and aggravating factors. We have listed these in Section 3 of Part A of this resource, and provide fuller details below.
These factors are in most cases outside of the NHS to influence or control, yet undoubtedly do impact negatively on mental health and wellbeing of clients from this community and as such need to be born in mind by NHS healthcare professionals, and to some extend NHS admin when taking initial calls or appointment requests from community members. We divide these complicating and aggravating factors into two main categories, provided below:
a) support services that are ineffective or inappropriate, and poorly joined up:
Non-joined up LGBTQ+ homeless support services impacts:
A non-joined up approach and commonplace revealed [from the community members experiences perspective] of earnestness & seriousness — example of many months delay on sub-group (May to September/October 2021), and need to be threatened by a councillor …
Services that are LGBTQ+ inappropriate, or LGBTQ+ engagement wonting in competence, impacts:
It is most important for NHS mental healthcare professionals to note that there exist a wide range of homeless support organisations, and that these are in various stages of LGBTQ+ engagement ranging from strong enmity, through to struggling and wishing to engage with effective LGBTQ+ support, especially youth, performance.
In the Bournemouth area (Bournemouth as a major UK South Coast holiday destination has a for its size, particularly large homeless community and LGBT community) the LGBT+ Network for Change was the first ever dedicated non-religious organisation to join a Council homeless support forum/board that has a great number of members, many of whom have direct religion associated organisations they represent.
Despite some in the leadership of the group recognising the scale and unique factors of the LGBTQ+ homelessness phenomenon and population of the area, there has been pronounced reluctance to, as the Network has requested tirelessly, develop a dedicated LGBTQ+ support element to the group; the best effort, much struggled for, being the creation of a diverse communities and youth sub-group.
The Network has had multiple cases where the former Bournemouth Council (now BCP Council) had LGBT homeless clients that where victims of abuse and phobic bullying in HMOs and housing association properties. Since the transition to the new BCP Council across a whole year the relevant officials in the council housing department still could not provide an answer to the request for clear information to potential LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness community members on how the council will deal with any request for LGBT+ appropriate& safe accommodation.
A similar request by the Network for simple, clear information on dedicated LGBTQ+ community engagement support position to a BCP area branch of a nationally well-known homeless accommodation & housing charity (a member of the same forum/group referred to, even a fellow member of the latter’s sub-group mentioned above) despite a number of requests remained not-responded to.
As such NHS mental healthcare services healthcare professionals need to be aware that such homeless support sector realities DO lead to very real mental health distress by LGBTQ+ community members accessing NHS mental healthcare services. This factor must always be born in mind that the types of accommodation related support required are commonly simply not there.
And that therefore support on fully coming Out/Self-Realisation as LGB or T provides the necessary state of mind robustness where the twin goals of a front door of ones own (non-housing associations, etc.) — with of course due diligence undertaken on the building or location at least not having a track record of homophobic experiences & incidents — with the opportunity it gives for having a regular job and normal socialising capacity, must be the primary goal from a mental healthcare provision perspective.
That many of these organisations have minor to major/direct associations with the single biggest causative factor – religions — in regard to leaving/being pushed out or fleeing parental and family home environments, is essential to be aware of. This of course refers to long-established UK/Western homeless support charities.
In the case of BAME/ethnic minority homeless support charities/organisations — added to the latter broader BAME and cultural societal contexts on LGBT communities, detailed elsewhere in this resource – there are currently still no LGBT+ dedicated or unambiguously LGBT+ friendly ones.
THESE FACTORS MUST BE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION BY NHS HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS IN ENGAGING WITH AND PROVIDING SERVICES TO LGBTQ+ HOMELESS AND AT RISK OF HOMELESSNESS (including Sofa Surfing) COMMUNITY MEMBERS for BOTH HAVE MAJOR NEGATIVE COMPLICATING AND HOLDING BACK ABILITY IMPACTS ON THE MENTAL HEALTH AND ABILITITY TO SELF-HELP OF THE LATTER.
b) Other factors complicating clear effective mental healthcare diagnosis and interventions:
Unlike the areas listed in ‘a’ above which LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness community members are generally all subject to, the four areas below will not apply to all of the latter, but have major physical health and safety and safeguarding negative impacts.
Regarding the initial two subjects detailed below the following link from the USA is particularly helpful: https://www.therecoveryvillage.com/drug-addiction/related-topics/homelessness-lgbtq-addiction/
Self-evidently, alcohol dependency and in some cases de-facto and/or clinical diagnosis of alcoholism are outcomes of severe to extreme stress caused by exceptional or day to day living circumstances. This is especially the case with the homeless community at large, and particularly the LGBTQ+ section of that community. The severity of and combination of given core and complicating secondary and tertiary factors for the LGBTQ+ homeless and at risk of homelessness communities result in the ‘perfect storm’ of propensity for and vulnerability in regard to severe/major alcohol dependency.
Drugs dependencies/abuse (including chemsex):
For many LGBTQ+ homeless community members, and especially those from the major Sofa Surfing section of the latter, proximity to recreational drug taking and even involvement in the drug dealing community is a commonplace with all of the attendant mental health, general health harming consequences, to which are added the mental health harming factors related to drug scene crime and criminality. These exacerbated by UK police constabularies and policing dearth of comprehension of the factors that can and do lead many LGBTQ+ homeless – especially sofa surfers – into recreational drugs taking and dealing situations.
IMPORTANT NOTE CONCERNING ALCOHOL DEPENDENCY AND RECREATIONAL DRUGS INVOLVEMENT (the latter including in some cases the Chemsex scene: details in the ‘Survival Sex Impacts’ section below):
It is essential NOT to assume that all LGBTQ+ — and indeed LGBT+ — homeless and sofa surfing community members will be subject to alcohol dependency and/or recreational drugs taking, but that multiple research papers and statistics have found that the community has disproportionately higher involvement in both. Therefore they should be considered as commonplace mental health and general medical wellbeing complicating factors that healthcare professionals need to be aware of and on an individual client basis consider as potentially impacting on medical and mental health improvement approaches and informing support interventions.
‘Survival sex’ — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survival_sex — is an exploitation-abuse phenomenon that has existed from the earliest times where one person is exploited in the most invasive and mental health and wellbeing harmful way possible by one [sometimes more than one] person of another, and is commonly associated with homelessness. Please see context particulars below:
‘ … LGBT homeless adolescents have increased rates of high-risk survival strategies, such as survival sex. They also are at greater risk of being physically or sexually victimized on the streets. Homeless lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth between the ages of 10 and 25 years are 70% more likely than homeless heterosexual youth to engage in survival sex (Walls & Bell, 2011). Similarly, LGBT homeless youth 13 to 21 years are more likely than non-LGBT homeless youth to experience physical or sexual victimization, have a greater number of perpetrators, and have unprotected sexual intercourse (Cochran et al., 2002).
‘In the Los Angeles Unified School District, compared with heterosexual students, the location of homelessness for LGBT or unsure students is less likely to be a homeless shelter (Rice et al., 2013) and greater than three times as likely to be a stranger’s home (14.5% versus 4.2%, P<0.001; Rice et al., 2012), which may indicate higher rates of sexual exploitation among these youth (Rice et al., 2013). LGBT homeless youth are more likely than their heterosexual counterparts to trade sex with a stranger, have more than 10 sexual partners who are strangers, have sex with a stranger who uses IV drugs, have anal sex with a stranger, have unprotected sex with a stranger, and have sex with a stranger after using drugs (Tyler, 2013).
Source: ‘Out on the Street: A Public Health and Policy Agenda for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth Who Are Homeless’ — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4098056/
In brief, Survival Sex is a transactional phenomenon that exists between one party that enjoys different forms of power, and another that is ultimately disempowered: a situation that is inimical to love and to loving equal relations between two parties, and numbing to the emotional sensitivities of the junior party in the relationship.
In addition in some cases, sofa surfing homeless in particular can be vulnerable to Survival Sex contexts medical and mental health harms that result from involvement in the Chemsex scene.
As such it provides multiple opportunities for mental and emotional distress to the latter, who through survival sex placed in a very disempowering position of being de-facto entrapped. As such in its own right there exist major mental health debriefing needs for those dependant on survival sex.
It is inconceivable that in the case of almost all — if not all — LGBTQ+ homeless and especially sofa surfing community members enmeshed in survival sex, that the distress of realising that if the normal expected standards and care of parental love had been maintained — instead of withdrawn and replaced with hurt and trauma – then they would have enjoyed the ability to formal normal equal loving relationships, instead of enduring the brutal, vicious circle of survival sex. Such considerations are important for healthcare professionals to be aware of.
Sexual Victimisation/abuse impacts:
Sexual victimisation, which can ultimately include physical rape and psychological equivalents no less traumatic, is a major risk vulnerability as well to those involved in survival sex. As above:
‘ … LGBT homeless youth 13 to 21 years are more likely than non-LGBT homeless youth to experience physical or sexual victimization, have a greater number of perpetrators, and have unprotected sexual intercourse (Cochran et al., 2002).’
Source: ‘Out on the Street: A Public Health and Policy Agenda for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth Who Are Homeless’ — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4098056/
NHS mental healthcare support of course exists for those who have experienced all levels and types of sexual abuse & victimisation. In such cases the bitter reflections of LGBTQ+ community members experiencing the latter on how their lives could have been so different if their families and parents had been wiser and actually loving in regard to their sexual orientation and/or gender self-identification will be exactly the same but even more intense than those who have found themselves having to be dependent on survival sex.
NOTE: In regard to any and all four of the above, it is important to avoid a ‘one size fits all’ stereotyping assumption approach as this would be both incorrect and disruptive to providing effective mental health medical services.
Clearly in the case of alcohol, drugs, and sexual activity, if these are clearly revealed in diagnosis and interventions choices, associated NHS medical services can be engaged by consensual agreement with the given client.
In the case of sexual exploitation, if this is revealed, this will require the relevant type of client controlled engagement with an appropriate DHC – Police contact point.
Where survival sex and sexual victimisation is concerned it will be essential for NHS healthcare professionals to help victims of either to help themselves to avoid self-blame: a commonplace in cases of sexual exploitation and abuse, resulting from the understandable trauma involved.
Here initial debriefing, non-self-blame, followed by positive affirmation of the ability to see a future becoming truly possible that involves sex without exploitation and/or abuse, and to have genuine equal basis, natural affection and loving relationships, are particularly important.
- Related services and signposting outside of DHC/the NHS:
‘A policy statement does not make a reliable record or give credibility from community members perspectives based on experience of the organisation providing the statement ’
We have touched on this subject at multiple points elsewhere in the resource, but given broader general LGBT+ and LGBTQ+ support needs experience. In the case of the latter’s homeless/sofa surfing/at risk of homelessness community support needs it is especially essential to know what support services are and are not available at local and at national levels.
In particular it is vital to know about performance of potential signposted to organisations/groups and their services where LGBT+ & LGBTQ+ communities are concerned in regard to issues and needs outside of direct mental healthcare provision, where these are present. Most of these – sexual health (Over The Rainbow), alcohol abuse, drugs related, etc. – can be found with DHC itself. Others lay outside.
In providing the listings below the LGBT+ Network for Change has applied the strict criteria that they are either run by and for LGBT & LGBTQ+ community members or are proven LGBT Allies in the services they deliver.
The LGBT+ Network for Change can also provide advocacy support services where needed
Albert Kennedy Trust: https://www.akt.org.uk/
The Outside Project (London based but useful): https://lgbtiqoutside.org/
Micro Rainbow: https://microrainbow.org/
The Stonewall Housing LGBT Jigsaw Project: https://stonewallhousing.org/project/lgbt-jigsaw/
Stonewall Housing: https://stonewallhousing.org/services/advice/
Mind Out (national, Brighton based direct LGBTQ+ and LGBT mental health charity): https://mindout.org.uk/get-support/
The Trevor Project (mainly youth mental health related): https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/
Report It resource on dealing with LGBT hate crime: https://www.report-it.org.uk/files/working-with-victims-of-anti_lgbt-hate-crimes-1.pdf
The BAME LGBT+ support: https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/guide/black-lgbtq-approaching-intersectional-conversations/
St Mungo’s: https://www.mungos.org/homelessness/i-need-help/
The Big Issue: https://www.bigissue.com/tag/lgbtq/ (please also read this helpful article: https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/my-parents-tried-to-pray-for-me-how-prejudice-is-driving-lgbtq-homelessness/)
Located in: Forever & Ever
Address: 53 Poole Hill, Bournemouth BH2 5PS, United Kingdom
PiPP (Pride in Prisons and Probation) – for cases where LGBT+ members ending their custodial sentences may encounter homelessness: https://www.consortium.lgbt/member-directory/pride-in-prison-probation/
Breakout Youth (Hampshire and IOW): https://www.breakoutyouth.org.uk/
Space Youth Project: https://www.spaceyouthproject.co.uk/
Dorset Mind (has an LGBT support section): https://dorsetmind.uk/help-and-support/support-groups/lgbtiq/
Other:
Local Authority Social Services (we recommend aspects of this resource be shared with the relevant section of the latter in BCP and Dorset councils, jointly by DHC and the Network)
Dorset Police – the relevant officers (at time of creating this resource Dorset Police have been asked by the Network to advise which officer(s) cover dedicated LGBT context homeless AND LGBT sofa surfing community members
Citizens Advice for BCP and Dorset – we recommend that DHC engages with both of the latter to ensure they are aware of DHC mental healthcare services support for LGBTQ+ community members at risk of homelessness
Colleges: the Network has an established relationship with Bournemouth & Poole College in regard to providing awareness resources and training for relevant staff, concerning LGBTQ+ homelessness support and prevention. We recommend the same for Weymouth College