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A book about Crown, Parliament and 325 years of British leadership might be the last place you would expect to find a youth homelessness charity. That is exactly why being in it matters. It is part of amplifying the work we do and championing the voices of the young people we support.
In 1987, Step by Step began with one young person sleeping in a church porch and one person who refused to walk past. Nearly forty years on, we have been chosen to feature in an official History of Parliament book, launched at Westminster Abbey alongside some of the most significant institutions in the country. That journey shows why we are increasingly at the forefront of the discussion.
Monarchy and Democracy: A History of Leadership is a landmark publication from the History of Parliament Trust and publisher St James's House. Written by leading academics and royal authors, it traces three centuries of leadership across the UK and the Commonwealth, and profiles a select group of organisations chosen for the difference they make. We are proud to be one of those organisations.
Raising the profile of Step by Step is part of our strategy to increase our exposure; our job is to be in front of decision-makers to represent the young people we support. A book read by MPs, peers, civil servants and decision-makers right across Westminster is a platform to turn young people’s lived experience into real influence.
Step by Step previously visited Parliament in 2024, when young people presented their policy recommendations directly to MPs, following our research with the University of Southampton. This book carries that mission further.
Head of Fundraising, Anda Chiu, and Head of Strategic Marketing and External Affairs, Nic Goom, attended a gathering in Westminster Abbey's College Garden. They networked with figures from across public life and the national press, including representatives from Ordnance Survey and the House of Commons Library.
"We are hugely proud to be featured in such a prestigious book," said Step by Step CEO Debbie Moreton. "But it is the reach that excites me. The more people who hear what young people facing homelessness are up against, the harder it becomes to look away."
Step by Step will keep pushing, and continue to amplify the voices of the young people we walk alongside, until the system failures that create youth homelessness are addressed.
Step by Step CEO Debbie Moreton is leading by example at the Step by Step abseil on Saturday 11th July.
Debbie will be taking on the daunting 100 metre drop, representing the charity and the hundreds of young people we support every year. This is despite Debbie's paralysing fear of heights.
