Ferguson, Ashleigh Anne
(2025)
“I’m like mould…no matter how many times you
wipe it away in the shower, it always comes back,
and that’s like me, I’m like, I’m back baby”: A
narrative oriented inquiry into the strengths and
vulnerabilities of young people without a
permanent home in education, employment and
training.
DAppEdPsy thesis, University of Nottingham.
Abstract
Described as a national scandal, the number of homeless people in England reached record levels in 2023 despite being widely under-reported (Fitzpatrick et al., 2023). Between 2022-2023, Centrepoint’s UK youth homeless data bank reported that 136,000 young people sought support from their local authority due to homelessness or risk of homelessness. Young homeless people (YHP) are an extremely vulnerable group who often go unnoticed in education, employment and training (EET) settings (Pescod, 2024). A recent special by the British Psychological Society in 2024, titled Homelessness and Educational Psychology, highlights the impacts of homelessness. The current study is timely and responds directly to the growing call for EPs involvement and action in this area.
The current study adopted Hiles and Čermák's (2008) framework of Narrative Oriented Inquiry (NOI) to explore the lived experiences of YHP in EET, specifically, the strengths and resources which support their access and engagement and the vulnerabilities which hinder their access and engagement with EET. The YHP’s perceptions of their future and their identity positionings were also explored. Guided narrative interviews and a life path were used to collect the participants' narratives. Three YHP, aged 18-23 years, and living in a hostel, participated in the research.
Hiles and Čermák's (2008) NOI framework was used for data analysis, which primarily draws on Lieblich et al's (1998) analytical techniques. The findings illustrated factors which were either a strength, vulnerability or both to YHP’s engagement with EET: - relationships, individual factors and experiences, challenges of living without a permanent home and unmet basic needs, systemic obstacles in EET and resilience. Further interpretations were made regarding the YHP’s perceptions of their future: - stability, independence and freedom, engaging with EET and systemic inequality. Identity positioning of the self, others, and the broader homelessness and EET system were also explored. It revealed a perception that systems actively disadvantage YHP in EET.
The findings are discussed in relation to existing literature and relevant psychological theory. Importantly, they highlight both the positive experiences and moments in YHP’s stories, alongside the challenges. This offers a counter-narrative to the dominant discourse in existing literature, which portrays YHP’s experiences of EET as predominantly negative. Implications for EET professionals, including EPs are considered. The limitations of the current research are reflected on and recommendations for future research are considered.
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