The Williams Institute

Over the past ten years, the percentage of homeless youth providers serving LGBT clients has increased from 82% to 94%. A majority of LGBT youth are receiving services that are available to all young people, with 24% of agency youth-oriented programs specifically being designed for LGBT youth. Nearly seven in ten (68%) respondents indicated that family rejection was a major factor contributing to LGBT youth homelessness, making it the most cited factor.  More than half (54%) of respondents indicated that abuse in their family was another important factor contributing to LGBT homelessness. Additionally, more than 75% of responding agencies worked with transgender youth in the past year.

Data are based on the LGBT Homeless Youth Provider Survey, a web-based survey conducted from October 2011 through March 2012. Based on data from 381 respondents, representing 354 agencies providing youth with homeless-related services, the report outlines key statistics on what LGBT youth populations are served by these agencies, who is most at risk, and why these populations are most at risk.