Help her out
Question
My girlfriend is younger than I am, she's 15 and is having really serious problems at home. Can she leave home at 15? She tells me she wants to leave and I just want to know if she can or if anything can be done about the situation.
Answer
Because your girlfriend is 15 years old she would not be able to get her own place. At the moment she's still classed as a child and someone has to have parental responsibility for her.
This means that she doesn't have a right to leave home yet. But it's important you both know that if she's unhappy there are people who will listen to her and help.
Can your girlfriend talk to a trusted family member or another adult about what's happening? If she doesn't feel able to talk to someone she knows, your girlfriend may feel happier talking to a trained advisor at Get Connected on 0808 808 4994. No matter what's going on at home a Get Connected advisor can offer confidential, impartial support and information about what sort of help is out there and how to get hold of it.
You haven't said what's happening to your girlfriend but it might be that social services have a duty to help. This could be the case if her parents are being violent or abusive towards her. If she finds herself in this situation, she should get advice immediately. To get specific advice about her housing options she can call Shelter in confidence on 0808 800 4444.
If your girlfriend would like to talk about how this situation is affecting her she can also call ChildLine on 0800 1111. If she calls ChildLine a counsellor will be able to listen to her and help her find ways of sorting out her problems and worries.
Updated: 22/09/2008
Question answered by Shelter
