A Qualitative Study of LGBTQI+ Youth Homelessness in Ireland

This report on the experiences of LGBTQI+ young people who find themselves without a home emerges from an exploration of the causes and solutions to youth homelessness which Focus Ireland has been engaged with for over 30 years. An important dimension of that work has been our engagement with researchers and activists across the world. Around 5 years ago, during a seminar at which we had invited Professor Steven Gaetz and Melanie Redman to talk to us about the Canadian ‘A Way Home’ youth homeless strategy, one of the slides included a statement that – ‘if you are not looking at LGBTQ homelessness you are not dealing with the causes of youth homelessness.’ An intern with the Advocacy team asked what was known about the issue in Ireland. This report can be traced back to the fact that the answer to that question was ‘nothing at all’.