Stranger danger? The intersectional impacts of shared housing on young people's health & wellbeing

Recent housing welfare reform in Britain has left many younger welfare claimants with no choice but to move into a shared rental property with strangers. In this paper we take an intersectional approach to analyzing the impact of housing welfare reform, by examining how certain protected equalities groups may be particularly at risk from the potential harms of shared living with strangers. Drawing upon in-depth biographical interview data, we outline how young people often spoke of their share houses as places that were detrimental to their health and wellbeing. Our analysis focuses on two key themes: physical safety and violence, followed by mental health and isolation. Ultimately the paper examines whether housing welfare reform in Britain has resulted in placing already vulnerable people into potentially dangerous and unhealthy housing situations.