Routes to Roofs
Improving the experience of leaving care for young people
Routes to Roofs is a new project that seeks to improve the experience of leaving care for young people. The project is working collaboratively with partners across Norfolk and with young people who have experience of leaving care to come up with solutions to the challenges they face, work out if they are doable and test them, before sharing learnings. The project has three key outcomes:
1. To improve housing pathways for young people leaving care, leading to improved housing security and agency
When it's time for young people to leave care, it can often feel like they’re facing a cliff edge where support suddenly drops off. One thing that can be particularly challenging is finding safe, comfortable housing. Young people leaving care are less likely to have options to live with family or someone to act as a guarantor for private rental, and this, combined with the impact of their trauma, can make things difficult.
Through our Staying Close, Staying Connected service, which we are piloting ahead of it becoming a statutory duty for local authorities in 2028, we are already working to address this challenge. However, pathways out of the service have become more difficult. There's been a decrease in the availability of social housing, and even when a young person does find somewhere, it still adds another move in their journey – creating anxiety and potential re-traumatisation.
Through Routes to Roofs, we are working in partnership to develop housing pathways that are responsive to young people’s needs, offering housing security and agency in their life.
2. To improve leaving care pathways for young people with disabilities, leading to greater agency, aspiration and enjoyment in life
Young people who move out of our disability children’s homes face additional challenges. Appropriate move-on options can be limited and aren’t always age-appropriate, care-responsive or trauma-informed. They can also be away from the young person’s family and support services, leaving them without their support network.
Through Routes to Roofs, we are working in partnership to develop a disability leaving care pathway that is tailored, flexible and care-responsive, which builds in social activities and promotes independence.
3. Progress towards the end of the cliff edge of care nationally
Our ambition is that the learning from this project will help ensure the roll-out of Staying Close is as inclusive and successful as possible, accompanying the legislation change and improving the journey from care to greater independence for care leavers nationally.
What's going to happen when?
November 2025 – March 2026
During this time, we mapped out project partners and established our co-production approach
March – July 2026
We are establishing expert working groups with project partners and young people; this group will develop a shortlist of potential new approaches
July – October 2026
We will consider the feasibility of each idea and choose which ones to take forward
October – December 2026
We will create project plans and decide how they will be evaluated
December 2026 – April 2028
We will deliver project plans and evaluate their effectiveness and impact
May 2028
We will hold a learning summit event and start planning what’s next
Get in touch
If you'd like to learn more about the project or are interested in getting involved, please get in touch with Steve Hulme at stephen.hulme@break-charity.org.