HOMELESS youth will have access to fresh and nutritious food following the launch of a food van in Wyndham.
Open Family Australia began operating a food van in the municipality last week as part of its Nutrition, Outreach, Support and Health (NOSH) program.
The program has been running in western Sydney since 2009.
Wyndham was chosen as the first Victorian location for the van after Open Family noticed an increase in homeless youths in the area.
Spokeswoman Melinda Octigan said the organisation had been providing outreach services to homeless youths in Wyndham since 2007 through the Hoppers Crossing Youth Resource Centre.
“One of the problems in Wyndham is there is not a lot of emergency housing. We have people coming to the youth resource centre who are living in squats so there is certainly a need for the program,” she said.
The van will visit areas where homeless youth and young people who are unemployed or not attending school are known to gather – such as shopping centres, parks and train stations – two or three days a week.
The launch of the Wyndham program coincided with the release of an Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth report card on the well-being of the nation’s young people. The report found 62.9 per cent of youth were homeless, up from 56 per cent in 2006.
Less than half had sought help from support services such as Open Family. Less than 5 per cent ate the recommended daily intake of vegetables, while 56 per cent consumed enough fruit.
