The charity receives a large share of its funding from Sheffield and Rotherham Councils through Central Government grants. This funding was announced by the previous Government in the 2021 spending review and comes to an end at the end of the financial year. If the funding is not continued, it will equate to almost £1bn of funding leaving the homelessness system.

And at a local level it could seriously impact many of Roundabout’s services, all aimed at reducing the prospect of homelessness for the region’s young people.

Roundabout Chief Executive Ben Keegan is joining the charity Homeless Link – the membership body for frontline homelessness services in England – in calling for The Chancellor’s October 30 Autumn Budget to extend the current funding package until 2025/26, including additional funding to recognise the prolonged period of high inflation service providers had to operate in.

Beyond that, Homeless Link is calling for the Government to reviewing all homelessness spending, before implementing a new ring-fenced funding system from 2026/27.

“I am already writing directly to our region’s MPs, urging them to support us and speak out against any possible loss of funding,” said Ben.

“We have been supporting young people in South Yorkshire for more than 40 years and the harsh reality is that this is the busiest we have ever been.

“There is an ever-growing demand from young people in desperate housing need in our region and the call for all our many services is at an all time high.

“We now support well over 380 young people aged 16 to 25 every day, providing emergency accommodation for those most at risk, supporting young people in residential projects in Sheffield and Rotherham and providing key services delivering comprehensive programmes of training, involvement and empowerment which help to prepare young people for independent living.

“We need to see youth homelessness placed higher up the agenda and made an absolute priority for change, but that can only be achieved with the proper levels of funding.

“Roundabout’s generous supporters give so much to ensure we can maintain our services but central government too has to show commitment to what is in danger of becoming a national scandal.

“The Roundabout team continues to do great work with increasingly limited resources in an area that has been under funded for too many years – and that needs to change.”

Nationally, rough sleeping rose by 27 per cent in 2023 and by 60 per cent since 2021.

Meanwhile, the most recent statutory homelessness statistics showed a record number of more than 150,000 children are currently trapped living in often squalid conditions.

Rick Henderson, CEO at Homeless Link, said: “Everyone needs a safe place to live. Homelessness services do vital work in supporting people who often have complex needs in addressing the issues behind their homelessness and helping them build new lives.

“But services need certainty to allow them to plan for the future and continue to support people.

“Announcing a roll-over of homelessness funding at the upcoming Budget, with a commit to implement a new ring-fenced funding system down the line, will allow homelessness providers to breathe a little bit easier and provide the kind of consistency people experiencing homelessness need.”