Home is where the heart is, according to young people

while only 13 per cent of 18 to 24 year olds associate home with physical space, 15 per cent said they associate it with a sense of self. Although there were notable differences across cultures, young people consistently imagined home as an almost sacred sanctuary — a space to escape, find refuge and, crucially, to be free of judgement.

“There is growing respect for indigenous wisdom among young people that places community at its core” – Helen Job, Insights Director at SPACE10

Overwhelmingly, this feeling was described as one of safety and refuge, but also of freedom. As one of our respondents put it, “home is a sense, a satisfied feeling. Home doesn’t need to have four walls, it’s more than that.”

“[Home is] a place, feeling, energy, that encourages me to express myself fully with no limitations, that keeps me grounded while allowing me to think and dream big, being surrounded by people who encourage me, motivate me, and keep me in check”

There is a clear, resounding divide between young people’s aspirations, hopes and dreams, and the reality they find themselves in. Currently, a majority of 18 to 24 year olds still want to own a home in the future, but our survey shows that this is increasingly seen as a pipe dream for many. “I would like to buy a home in the future,” one female re... See more

Clearly, physical safety is obviously of utmost importance to today’s youth, but so is a broader sense of mental and emotional wellbeing. Young people don’t just want to feel safe, but secure and calm too. At the moment, unfortunately, this simply isn’t the case.

in an unstable, unpredictable world, ‘home’ becomes an increasingly fluid and emotional concept.

Technology is forcing us to question the boundaries of our homes and communities. The climate crisis is forcing us to rethink how we treat our shared planet. When asked what their top concerns were for 2022, half of the young people we surveyed said ‘the climate crisis’ — more than double the number who said ‘mental health’ or ‘my relationships’. S... See more

With this in mind, is it any wonder young people’s ideas about what ‘home’ means have shifted radically? Should it really come as a surprise that for the generation now coming of age, the concept of ‘home’ is more unstable, impermanent, and deeply-rooted in emotion than ever before?