Gurleen is a Sikh gay man who lives with his parents in the North East of England.

The day he rang akt, he thought his parents had discovered he was gay, and was afraid that he would be asked to leave home when returning from work that evening. Gurleen contacted akt, unsure whether his parents knew he was gay, and if not whether he should think about coming out to them. He was afraid for his future and that he could be rejected by his family forever.

akt worked with Gurleen and supported him to reach the decision to come out to his family. akt created an emergency housing plan for Gurleen in case the conversation with his parents didn’t go to plan and he had to leave home suddenly. What was essential during this call was to support Gurleen to be confident in who he is; prepare him for his parents’ response and consider their perspective to enable a sensitive and positive disclosure.

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We believe no young person should have to choose between a safe home and being who they are. If you'd like to support our work with young LGBTQ+ people facing or experiencing homelessness, click here.

Photo: Sara Carpentieri