0:00:09 > 0:00:11The swinging 60s.
0:00:11 > 0:00:13Brimming with optimism...
0:00:13 > 0:00:15And Hurst scores for the third time.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18England have won the World Cup.
0:00:18 > 0:00:22A new era of music, fashion and technology.
0:00:22 > 0:00:28But it wasn't the same for everyone.
0:00:30 > 0:00:34In 1966, a BBC drama documentary burst the bubble.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37Cathy Come Home told the harrowing story of a young couple's
0:00:37 > 0:00:41descent into homelessness.
0:00:41 > 0:00:46The director was Ken Loach.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49When we made Cathy there was a serious homeless
0:00:49 > 0:00:51problem that people didn't recognise.
0:00:51 > 0:00:53It was a ground-breaking film.
0:00:53 > 0:00:56It looked like a documentary, showing how any one of us could find
0:00:56 > 0:00:58ourselves facing homelessness.
0:00:58 > 0:01:01You would see the fictional event...
0:01:01 > 0:01:03And the next answer we got was, "No children".
0:01:03 > 0:01:04No children accepted.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07..and then you hear a piece of documentary fact...
0:01:07 > 0:01:10Birmingham - 39,000 families on the waiting list.
0:01:11 > 0:01:12Leeds - 13,500.
0:01:12 > 0:01:16..so that you knew this just wasn't an isolated incident.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20This reflected the state of society as a whole.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23From the moment Cathy simply gets behind with her rent,
0:01:23 > 0:01:25her fate is sealed.
0:01:25 > 0:01:29She loses everything - her home, her husband,
0:01:29 > 0:01:31even her children.
0:01:31 > 0:01:37The film still packs a punch.
0:01:37 > 0:01:39Oh, it's the beginning of the end, isn't it?
0:01:40 > 0:01:41Raising the rent.
0:01:41 > 0:01:44Took the children, walked off with them, and didn't care.
0:01:44 > 0:01:47That's pretty much what they said to me.
0:01:53 > 0:01:55Cathy Come Home tackles homelessness in a
0:01:55 > 0:01:59typically brutal and honest way.
0:01:59 > 0:02:01That film was made over 50 years ago.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05I want to find out if people are facing the same ordeal today.
0:02:18 > 0:02:19I've had a major heart attack.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23I've been told by my doctor I'm not supposed to go back to work yet.
0:02:23 > 0:02:24Ken Loach has been making controversial
0:02:24 > 0:02:28films throughout his long career.
0:02:28 > 0:02:30I'm going to have to ask you to leave.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33I'm trying to explain to you a situation and you don't care.
0:02:33 > 0:02:35His latest - I, Daniel Blake - tells the
0:02:35 > 0:02:37story of a man beaten by the benefits system.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39I've got about 12 quid in my purse.
0:02:39 > 0:02:42Do you know what - you've created a scene, all right?
0:02:42 > 0:02:43Jesus Christ! What I supposed to do?
0:02:43 > 0:02:45Who's first in this queue? I am.
0:02:45 > 0:02:47Do you mind if this young lass signs on first?
0:02:47 > 0:02:49No, no, you carry on.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53This isn't your concern - I want you to get out as well.
0:02:53 > 0:02:55This is Ken Loach's home city of Bath.
0:02:55 > 0:02:58It's a tourist magnet, attracting millions of
0:02:58 > 0:03:01visitors every year.
0:03:01 > 0:03:03They come for the Georgian architecture, the Roman
0:03:03 > 0:03:07history and the designer shops.
0:03:07 > 0:03:09At the end of their holidays tourists
0:03:09 > 0:03:11will pack up and go home, but across the south-west
0:03:11 > 0:03:15there are more than 1000 families who have no place of their own.
0:03:15 > 0:03:17They're faced with eviction, living in temporary
0:03:17 > 0:03:25accommodation, or even sofa surfing with friends and family.
0:03:28 > 0:03:30It's just a few days before Christmas, and
0:03:30 > 0:03:33Luke's family is facing eviction.
0:03:33 > 0:03:37I received an e-mail on the 1st of November,
0:03:37 > 0:03:38and with that e-mail there was attached
0:03:38 > 0:03:40a section 21 notice,
0:03:40 > 0:03:44effectively giving us two months to vacate the property.
0:03:44 > 0:03:48Luke's rented this house in Bristol for more than five years.
0:03:48 > 0:03:53We've got mine and my wife's room here, with Jack staying with us.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56He works full-time but his low wage means he partly
0:03:56 > 0:03:59relies on housing benefit.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03Having to go and acquire financial assistance
0:04:03 > 0:04:07to put a roof over my children's head, I feel like I've failed as
0:04:07 > 0:04:09a father, I really do.
0:04:09 > 0:04:13The reality being, for me, is that, rightly or wrongly,
0:04:13 > 0:04:17if I wasn't working this rent would be paid for me.
0:04:17 > 0:04:21But I'm passionate in the fact that I want to set an example for my
0:04:21 > 0:04:24children that, no, working does pay.
0:04:24 > 0:04:27We've got my two eldest in this room here.
0:04:27 > 0:04:29Typical boys' room.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32So they share, they've got their own bit of space.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34It's just really stressful, you know?
0:04:34 > 0:04:38You try and get into the Christmas spirit and me and my wife
0:04:38 > 0:04:42just feel flat, cos we know that once all the celebrations are done,
0:04:42 > 0:04:44once the turkey's eaten, it's time to pack up.
0:04:44 > 0:04:47Not just pack up the Christmas decs - pack up the
0:04:47 > 0:04:51wardrobes, pack up everything, out the door.
0:04:51 > 0:04:53And it just puts so much stress on us.
0:04:53 > 0:04:58You know, we've been snapping at each other, snappy with
0:04:58 > 0:05:00the kids, just purely because of the amount of stress
0:05:00 > 0:05:02that this has caused us.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05My biggest concern is that the stress gets too much and
0:05:05 > 0:05:08then me and my wife end up splitting up.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12The children then end up growing up with a split family.
0:05:12 > 0:05:13I don't want that.
0:05:13 > 0:05:17You know, I love my wife, I love my children, I want to be there
0:05:17 > 0:05:18for them all the way.
0:05:18 > 0:05:22But the stress on this is just something else.
0:05:22 > 0:05:24I just want a place where I can bring up
0:05:24 > 0:05:28my children, they've got nice, happy memories.
0:05:28 > 0:05:29That's what a home is to me.
0:05:29 > 0:05:35Memories, experiences, safety, comfort.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38This isn't a home any more.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42Not at all.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45Luke and his family only have three weeks left to find
0:05:45 > 0:05:48somewhere to live.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50The story of Cathy was a couple who are quite
0:05:50 > 0:05:54well set up, the guy's got a job, and the girl's got a job, they have
0:05:54 > 0:05:56children.
0:05:56 > 0:05:58He gets injured, he can't drive, he's a lorry driver.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00One thing leads to another, they move in
0:06:00 > 0:06:05with his parents, and it all goes wrong.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07What, three months in arrears?
0:06:07 > 0:06:09Well, I'll knock his block in.
0:06:09 > 0:06:15I mean, who does he think he's talking to?
0:06:17 > 0:06:21Just like Cathy's husband, Reg, Imogen lost her job.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24She was a manager of a charity shop.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26He says here we owe him three months!
0:06:26 > 0:06:29Oh, it's the beginning of the end, isn't it?
0:06:30 > 0:06:32Arrears on the rent.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34Hey, look, I told you once we'll pay you,
0:06:34 > 0:06:36if only you'll give us time.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40I know your game - you want to get us out so you can
0:06:40 > 0:06:41charge someone else key money.
0:06:41 > 0:06:42Can you relate to that?
0:06:42 > 0:06:44I'll tell you what - I've always been really careful
0:06:44 > 0:06:52all my life not to get in that situation.
0:06:54 > 0:06:56When Imogen became unemployed, her landlord
0:06:56 > 0:07:00increase the rent by ?200 a month, raising it to the maximum
0:07:00 > 0:07:02paid by housing benefit.
0:07:02 > 0:07:05I'm just a normal person who's lost their job.
0:07:05 > 0:07:06I'm lucky I've still got my home.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09You know, other people literally would be a lot worse off.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12I could have been kicked out of here, if the landlord decided
0:07:12 > 0:07:15he didn't want people on benefits.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18He could have been the sort of landlord that just goes, oh...
0:07:18 > 0:07:20And gives you a month's notice because you've lost your job.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22So I was a bit lucky there.
0:07:22 > 0:07:24Do you think that's fair, though?
0:07:24 > 0:07:26Not fair at all, no, it's taking the Mickey
0:07:26 > 0:07:27out of the system.
0:07:27 > 0:07:28And me.
0:07:28 > 0:07:29It means that when I...
0:07:29 > 0:07:32Well, I am genuinely looking for a job, I don't want to
0:07:32 > 0:07:33be unemployed.
0:07:33 > 0:07:36It means that when I get a job I'm going to be ?200 a
0:07:36 > 0:07:38month worse off than I was.
0:07:38 > 0:07:40Or I'll still have to go and try and search
0:07:40 > 0:07:42for somewhere that's more affordable for me.
0:07:42 > 0:07:44Why are you still here if that's happened?
0:07:44 > 0:07:46Why I'm still here is because it's actually almost
0:07:46 > 0:07:49impossible to be able to afford to move, for me.
0:07:49 > 0:07:51You know, you look at anywhere nowadays, it's like you've
0:07:51 > 0:07:54got to have ?500 rent, you've got to have a ?500 deposit,
0:07:54 > 0:07:57you might have to have agency fees - so you're looking
0:07:57 > 0:08:02at probably at least ?1000, just clear, to move house.
0:08:02 > 0:08:04Now, I literally haven't had that money.
0:08:04 > 0:08:08If I said to you now, what does home look like to you?
0:08:08 > 0:08:11It's like a hug around you, it's safe, it's cosy,
0:08:11 > 0:08:14it's secure.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16I think so many of us just, like...
0:08:16 > 0:08:18We don't even know what that is any more.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20And I sort of feel like, because I've been here
0:08:20 > 0:08:23for a little while, I've "Imified" it, I've put my mark on it,
0:08:23 > 0:08:25I've put my art everywhere and blahdy-blah, I've
0:08:25 > 0:08:29got all my plants, I've got my door that shuts really well and I can
0:08:29 > 0:08:33double bolt it - I feel quite safe and secure here.
0:08:33 > 0:08:38But that whole real nurturing feeling of, like, it's home...
0:08:38 > 0:08:42No, it's not there yet.
0:08:42 > 0:08:44Cathy and her family couldn't pay the rent.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46They lose their home and end up living in her mother-in-law's
0:08:47 > 0:08:47house.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50It doesn't work out.
0:08:50 > 0:08:51It's about time you was going.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53All right, then I'll go.
0:08:53 > 0:08:56You can keep your rotten old flat, I can't stand it anyway.
0:08:56 > 0:09:06It's driving me round the bloody bend!
0:09:07 > 0:09:10But sofa surfing or sharing someone else's home isn't always possible.
0:09:10 > 0:09:13Just a short walk from Bath's designer shops is a hostel.
0:09:13 > 0:09:17It's home to 11 people who have nowhere else to go.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20People look down on people for being homeless,
0:09:20 > 0:09:23but it can happen to the best of us.
0:09:23 > 0:09:24Lorna's 36.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27She's been living here for six months.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29What's it like at Barnabas house?
0:09:29 > 0:09:31Because you've got similar people from a similar
0:09:31 > 0:09:33background all together.
0:09:33 > 0:09:34It's actually a really nice place at
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Barnabas house, because we're all in the same position.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41Everybody helps each other out, which is really nice.
0:09:41 > 0:09:46But, at the same time, it's hard work living in a hostel, when
0:09:47 > 0:09:50you haven't got your own place.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53I didn't want you guys to film in there today,
0:09:53 > 0:09:56because that's my one little space that I've got.
0:09:57 > 0:09:58I don't want it on telly.
0:09:58 > 0:10:01That's my one little thing for me, really.
0:10:01 > 0:10:02But, do you know what?
0:10:02 > 0:10:07With Barnabas house, if they hadn't helped us out...
0:10:08 > 0:10:09Yeah, I don't know.
0:10:09 > 0:10:11I don't know where I'd be right now.
0:10:11 > 0:10:13Can't you come round and give me a hand?
0:10:13 > 0:10:14All right, all right, love.
0:10:14 > 0:10:16Watching the film, many of Lorna's neighbours
0:10:16 > 0:10:22felt Cathy's desperation when she had nowhere to go.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25They're making themselves a tent.
0:10:25 > 0:10:28I've thought about that before, especially in the summer.
0:10:28 > 0:10:29Sean's not very well either.
0:10:29 > 0:10:32Yeah, I considered putting a tent up last summer,
0:10:32 > 0:10:36when I was sort of sofa surfing and just all over the shop.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40I did, I did consider buying a tent and just going pitching it up
0:10:40 > 0:10:43because, you know, I'd not a lot of money at the time and my
0:10:43 > 0:10:48relationship had broken down, and I didn't have anywhere to live.
0:10:48 > 0:10:53And, yeah, that was quite hard to watch, when they put the tent up.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57When we told Cathy's story, I think people were
0:10:57 > 0:11:00prepared to be touched.
0:11:00 > 0:11:02I think now there's been such a conscious
0:11:02 > 0:11:07propaganda against people who are vulnerable, you know -
0:11:07 > 0:11:12"skivers against strivers", "benefit cheats".
0:11:12 > 0:11:14There's a cynicism and a hardness now in our
0:11:14 > 0:11:22culture which turns away from people who are having a hard time.
0:11:22 > 0:11:24Do you find that you're constantly judged
0:11:24 > 0:11:26even though you're trying to better your life?
0:11:26 > 0:11:27Yeah.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30Yeah, by society, definitely.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33We all have goals in life and it's mainly to basically
0:11:33 > 0:11:35lead a normal life, whatever that is, anyway.
0:11:35 > 0:11:36Whatever normal is.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39But just to break the circle of living
0:11:39 > 0:11:42in hostels, getting kicked out, living on the street, trying to get
0:11:42 > 0:11:45back in, getting a place, getting kicked out...
0:11:45 > 0:11:47And then, as Lorna said, once you've been kicked out of
0:11:47 > 0:11:51somewhere the council are like, "You're intentionally homeless".
0:11:51 > 0:11:53But there might have been reasons that you've
0:11:53 > 0:11:56been kicked out that something that could have been stopped or some sort
0:11:56 > 0:11:59of support network that you could have had behind you that could have
0:11:59 > 0:12:01maybe lead you in a better direction.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05But when you're left to your own devices and you're in this
0:12:05 > 0:12:08sort of depressive spiral, going around and round, it's hard to sort
0:12:08 > 0:12:11of break that.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15The story of Cathy was one that came to us through the
0:12:15 > 0:12:16writer Jeremy Sandford.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19He'd done research as a journalist and he'd
0:12:19 > 0:12:22described situations in which families were broken up
0:12:22 > 0:12:25because they had nowhere to live.
0:12:25 > 0:12:28And that's shocking, isn't it - to think people can't live together,
0:12:28 > 0:12:31the families are destroyed, because they've got nowhere to live?
0:12:31 > 0:12:36So we looked into it and we did the research and we made the film.
0:12:36 > 0:12:44And the film basically follows the research.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46The first two people's houses are ready
0:12:46 > 0:12:49for the Minister of Housing, Mr Harold Macmillan, to inspect with
0:12:49 > 0:12:50the architect.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53Built in 12 weeks for less than ?1000 each, these houses
0:12:53 > 0:12:56seem one answer to the housing drive.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59In the 60s and 70s, tens of thousands of
0:12:59 > 0:13:01council houses were built.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04In fact, by the late 70s over one third of the population
0:13:04 > 0:13:06rented their homes.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10It is my great pleasure to hand that over to you as a little token of...
0:13:10 > 0:13:13But, from the 80s, the right to buy scheme meant councils
0:13:13 > 0:13:17sold off their properties, leaving fewer available for families
0:13:17 > 0:13:20to rent.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30It's no solution, but in Bath there is a unique shelter which
0:13:30 > 0:13:33gets people off the streets.
0:13:33 > 0:13:35It costs ?3 a night.
0:13:45 > 0:13:49Wow, this is quite small.
0:13:49 > 0:13:50Yeah...
0:13:50 > 0:13:53I can touch both sides of the wall.
0:13:53 > 0:13:57It's really, really small.
0:13:57 > 0:14:01I got offered a pod there, but I took one look at it and burst
0:14:01 > 0:14:02into tears.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04It was so small.
0:14:04 > 0:14:06I was too claustrophobic.
0:14:06 > 0:14:07I couldn't do it.
0:14:07 > 0:14:09And I spent the night on the streets that night.
0:14:09 > 0:14:11I just couldn't be there.
0:14:11 > 0:14:15Spending the night on the streets was, yeah, it wasn't good.
0:14:15 > 0:14:16I'm not going to lie.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19But...
0:14:19 > 0:14:22It had to be done, at the end of the day.
0:14:22 > 0:14:26Do you remember where you state?
0:14:26 > 0:14:28I think I stayed down the Rec, under the seats.
0:14:28 > 0:14:30The violent relationships that I had with my bloke
0:14:30 > 0:14:33was going through my mind.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36I'd lost my kids - that was going through my mind.
0:14:36 > 0:14:40I'd lost my home - that was going through my mind.
0:14:40 > 0:14:44Everything was going through my mind.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Like Cathy's children, Kai had a very difficult childhood
0:14:51 > 0:14:55being moved between family members and taken into care.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58We're back in Midsomer Norton in Somerset, where he found himself
0:14:58 > 0:15:01on the street when he was just 15.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04When you were homeless was there any particular place you used to go to?
0:15:04 > 0:15:06No, I just walked up and down.
0:15:06 > 0:15:11What does it feel like being back here knowing you were homeless here?
0:15:11 > 0:15:15I zoned out of when I got hard times in life because of my past
0:15:15 > 0:15:17experiences being at home and the way I grew up.
0:15:17 > 0:15:22I think it's just my shield to protect me so I don't get too
0:15:22 > 0:15:25emotionally attached to the problem and then have a meltdown
0:15:25 > 0:15:27or go into some sort of...
0:15:27 > 0:15:30problem that can't be sorted out.
0:15:30 > 0:15:32The start of your journey to becoming homeless,
0:15:32 > 0:15:33how did that happen?
0:15:33 > 0:15:37Me and my dad had a few arguments in the house and he kicked me out.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40I went to stay with my sister in Westfield and because she was
0:15:40 > 0:15:42pregnant she was getting stressed.
0:15:42 > 0:15:47I think things got too chaotic for her and then she kicked me out
0:15:47 > 0:15:50and at that time I didn't think I had anyone to call -
0:15:50 > 0:15:53I knew I didn't because I had annoyed everyone, and then I came
0:15:53 > 0:15:57here on the high street and pretty much had nowhere to go,
0:15:57 > 0:16:01didn't know what to do.
0:16:01 > 0:16:05People who do suffer family break-ups and being taken into care
0:16:05 > 0:16:11have got more hurdles to jump over than most people and
0:16:11 > 0:16:12obviously need support.
0:16:12 > 0:16:17People are always extraordinary, aren't they?
0:16:17 > 0:16:20Who can say how people will turn out but it doesn't help
0:16:20 > 0:16:27if your schooling is being changed every year, if you have no permanent
0:16:27 > 0:16:36home, if you're cramped, if your mother, parents depend
0:16:36 > 0:16:38on food banks...
0:16:38 > 0:16:43If you're in that trap, yes, the children become vulnerable
0:16:43 > 0:16:51and who knows what problems will come from that?
0:16:51 > 0:16:56Eventually Kai was excluded from school.
0:16:56 > 0:16:58I was really naughty at school.
0:16:58 > 0:17:00I didn't have any guidance, so I think my schooling life
0:17:00 > 0:17:03was quite bad but the school didn't quite understand what I was going
0:17:03 > 0:17:05through at home so they didn't understand why
0:17:05 > 0:17:09I was getting angry and naughty.
0:17:09 > 0:17:13At the point you were homeless and these doors were shut
0:17:13 > 0:17:17in your face and there was nowhere for you to go,
0:17:17 > 0:17:21how did you feel and where was your mindset at the time?
0:17:21 > 0:17:22I was quite stressed.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24I don't think I coped well.
0:17:24 > 0:17:28I became quite ill, I was seeing my doctor regularly
0:17:28 > 0:17:30because I had different symptoms for different things
0:17:30 > 0:17:33and didn't think I was coping well.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35I wasn't going to the toilet properly, I was
0:17:35 > 0:17:36bringing up puke quite a lot.
0:17:36 > 0:17:39I've had people tell me I'm never going to get anywhere in life,
0:17:39 > 0:17:42I'm useless and I'm going to be sleeping on the streets.
0:17:42 > 0:17:46Well, I have had to stay on streets until 2am but I've been able to get
0:17:46 > 0:17:51back off it and into somewhere, to have a bath and something to eat
0:17:51 > 0:17:54because I didn't want to be there.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57Do you think you ever had a point where your hope was lost
0:17:57 > 0:17:59at some point in your life?
0:17:59 > 0:18:00Many times.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03I've been to the point where I didn't want to be around anymore,
0:18:03 > 0:18:08I felt like I didn't want to be here but I kept thinking,
0:18:08 > 0:18:13if I do something at least I'll get somewhere and then I'll be somewhere
0:18:13 > 0:18:18and just keep going up from there.
0:18:25 > 0:18:25Thus
0:18:25 > 0:18:27The impact of Cathy on society was, as a news story, was immense.
0:18:30 > 0:18:34The impact of Cathy on society was, as a news story, was immense.
0:18:34 > 0:18:38The impact in changes was minimal.
0:18:38 > 0:18:44There was one small change in terms of local authorities having to house
0:18:44 > 0:18:47the man of the family, they would have to house husbands
0:18:47 > 0:18:51so families wouldn't be split up, so that was a good thing
0:18:51 > 0:18:57but it was not big, and of course the long-term impact has been pretty
0:18:57 > 0:19:01well zero because homelessness is much worse.
0:19:01 > 0:19:03We could take your children into care
0:19:03 > 0:19:04and turn you out just like that.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07Please don't do that.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10As Cathy's life continues to spiral out of control, the authorities
0:19:10 > 0:19:12tell her what could happen to her children.
0:19:12 > 0:19:17It's Luke's worst nightmare.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20That is a shocking attitude.
0:19:20 > 0:19:22It was, wasn't it?
0:19:22 > 0:19:26Mind you, not much has changed because the council said to me
0:19:26 > 0:19:29if I refused any of their help, next thing they'll do
0:19:29 > 0:19:31is phone social services.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34Terrible, isn't it?
0:19:34 > 0:19:40Luke's situation is affecting three generations of his family.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43It's heartbreaking for them and it's heartbreaking for us
0:19:43 > 0:19:48because we can't change that situation for them.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51They can come and live here but I have my daughter living
0:19:51 > 0:19:53with us and my son in law while they're saving
0:19:54 > 0:19:56for their deposit.
0:19:56 > 0:20:01We have two bedrooms and a box room and in fact if they came to us,
0:20:01 > 0:20:04then they would now be living in a different council area,
0:20:04 > 0:20:07moving from Bristol to South Gloucestershire,
0:20:07 > 0:20:12therefore with no accountability for them, so you think,
0:20:12 > 0:20:13would we be helping?
0:20:13 > 0:20:15We wouldn't.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18We understand Luke and Sarah are going to have a struggle.
0:20:18 > 0:20:24I would hate if my grandchildren had the same struggle my children have.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27There's no let up in the house-hunting but private
0:20:27 > 0:20:31renting seems to be out of reach.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35Your annual salary has to be 30 times the monthly rent,
0:20:35 > 0:20:38which the average house price for rent on this side of town,
0:20:38 > 0:20:43you're looking at about 900, 950 for a three-bed house.
0:20:43 > 0:20:47In an ideal world I'd like a four but that's not going to happen.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50I would need to be earning close to ?30,000 a year.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54How many people in Lawrence Weston are earning close to ?30,000 a year?
0:20:54 > 0:20:59And I would classify myself as on a decent wage.
0:20:59 > 0:21:02They looked at private rent and they didn't
0:21:02 > 0:21:07make the affordability, so I went guarantor on their rent
0:21:07 > 0:21:11but because I worked 40-odd years as a nurse,
0:21:11 > 0:21:17had 26 years for the NHS and now I've retired from nursing,
0:21:17 > 0:21:23taken my NHS pension, I do a bit of agency to support
0:21:23 > 0:21:28that and to top that up, and because I've got a zero-hours
0:21:28 > 0:21:33contract they wouldn't accept me as a guarantor for him,
0:21:33 > 0:21:38even though we own our house outright, my wife still works
0:21:38 > 0:21:44regular but between us we didn't meet the affordability.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46I had the assumption before I'd gone through this that people
0:21:46 > 0:21:50with housing shortages were people that weren't working,
0:21:50 > 0:21:55that were too lazy or bone idle but that's just not true.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58There's people like myself that go out to work Monday to Friday,
0:21:58 > 0:22:01Saturday, Sunday working, trying to provide for their family,
0:22:01 > 0:22:07and your family home gets taken from underneath you.
0:22:08 > 0:22:10I knew they'd catch up with us wherever we tried
0:22:10 > 0:22:12to bed down for the night.
0:22:12 > 0:22:15The most shocking scene of Cathy Come Home is at the end.
0:22:15 > 0:22:18She is thrown out of an overcrowded hostel onto the street
0:22:18 > 0:22:20and her children are taken away.
0:22:20 > 0:22:22You're not having my kids!
0:22:22 > 0:22:24You're not having them!
0:22:24 > 0:22:33SHE SCREAMS.
0:22:33 > 0:22:37How did that make you feel watching that?
0:22:37 > 0:22:40I think I got a bit angry because they didn't really care
0:22:40 > 0:22:45about her feelings and they didn't do it in a kind manner, they just
0:22:45 > 0:22:49took the children and walked away, didn't care and they made her stay,
0:22:49 > 0:22:52she couldn't say goodbye properly.
0:22:52 > 0:22:54The parade will turn right in threes.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57Right, turn.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00Kai's found a kind of surrogate family through his involvement
0:23:00 > 0:23:05with the Army cadets and it's changed his life.
0:23:05 > 0:23:09In your own platoon you get the feel there's a family thing and then
0:23:09 > 0:23:12when you go with every other platoon in your company which makes up
0:23:12 > 0:23:15the battalion, you get more of cousins or more part
0:23:15 > 0:23:17of the family coming in.
0:23:17 > 0:23:20I now want to go to see Breen holiday camp.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23Tell me the grid reference.
0:23:23 > 0:23:2655.
0:23:26 > 0:23:30When I joined I wasn't very nice, pleasant or any of that but now
0:23:30 > 0:23:34I think I've improved a lot, dramatically, quickly as well,
0:23:34 > 0:23:38with the help of cadets.
0:23:43 > 0:23:45Whilst it might be legal to serve this notice,
0:23:45 > 0:23:49it's not really acceptable or ethical or moral,
0:23:49 > 0:23:51so we're here to stand up and show people that
0:23:51 > 0:23:55people power can really help.
0:23:55 > 0:23:59Just days before Luke's to lose his home, the community gets together
0:23:59 > 0:24:03to try to delay the eviction.
0:24:03 > 0:24:05They were told they were going to go into emergency
0:24:05 > 0:24:06accommodation straightaway.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09They couldn't guarantee it would be in this area even though one
0:24:09 > 0:24:12of the kids doing his GCSEs, one of them is autistic.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15They would be in emergency accommodation for about six weeks.
0:24:15 > 0:24:17If they didn't take that urgency accommodation,
0:24:17 > 0:24:21if it was in Yeovil or Stroud, they would be wilfully making
0:24:21 > 0:24:24themselves homeless and therefore the social services would be
0:24:24 > 0:24:27contacted because they owe a duty of care to the children.
0:24:27 > 0:24:37ALL: # We are fighting for security and to be treated with dignity...
0:24:40 > 0:24:44The aim of the protest was to get an answer for the landlord
0:24:44 > 0:24:46to whether they could stay longer because they clearly couldn't be out
0:24:46 > 0:24:49on the 1st of January without going into emergency
0:24:49 > 0:24:52accommodation, which would be very unsettling for a family of six.
0:24:52 > 0:25:00Thank you everybody for coming so far today, and keep up the fight.
0:25:00 > 0:25:02The eviction can't be stopped but the protest has
0:25:02 > 0:25:04won them some precious time.
0:25:04 > 0:25:09They have given us a two-month extension to the eviction notice,
0:25:09 > 0:25:11which is just brilliant.
0:25:11 > 0:25:14It means we can have our Christmas, we can relax a little,
0:25:14 > 0:25:16we have a bit of breathing space.
0:25:16 > 0:25:18We still have to be proactive and try and get something sorted
0:25:18 > 0:25:22but we have that that breathing space now.
0:25:22 > 0:25:27The council are doing all they can.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30They have agreed they are going to help us but it gives us that
0:25:30 > 0:25:34extra bit of time so we can stay in the place and keep a roof
0:25:34 > 0:25:35over our heads over the winter.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39It's brilliant news, such a weight off my shoulders.
0:25:49 > 0:25:53I recently caught up with Luke to see if anything has changed.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56How's the house-hunting going?
0:25:56 > 0:25:58It's...
0:25:58 > 0:25:59Hit and miss, really.
0:25:59 > 0:26:05You've got private rents that just don't match the affordability
0:26:05 > 0:26:10and then with the council it's a case of the bidding system,
0:26:10 > 0:26:14just waiting for a property to come up within this area.
0:26:14 > 0:26:17And how important is it to stay in Lawrence Weston for you?
0:26:17 > 0:26:22It's massive, it's hugely important because my family are settled here.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25We have a family that live on our doorstep.
0:26:25 > 0:26:29And what kind of stress has this had on you personally as the man
0:26:29 > 0:26:32of the house and your family?
0:26:32 > 0:26:39The stress on me is unreal because you've got the threat of,
0:26:39 > 0:26:45you know, you and your family could be homeless within a matter
0:26:45 > 0:26:47of months and a family, like the children, we try to
0:26:47 > 0:26:51shelter them as best we can and keep it quite positive.
0:26:51 > 0:26:56Obviously they are aware of what is going on now but it's
0:26:56 > 0:27:02just a case of keeping them, keeping things positive for them
0:27:02 > 0:27:06so it doesn't affect them too much, and then my wife is quite stressed
0:27:06 > 0:27:09about everything, as you can imagine.
0:27:09 > 0:27:13What advice would you give to our contributors of the film?
0:27:13 > 0:27:15I'd say to them, be angry.
0:27:15 > 0:27:18It's not your fault.
0:27:18 > 0:27:23You're in this situation because the system doesn't work.
0:27:23 > 0:27:25The system is generating this poverty and this cruelty
0:27:25 > 0:27:28and they know it, but the people who get
0:27:28 > 0:27:32rich because of it, of course, are in power.
0:27:32 > 0:27:34All I'm going for is my children.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37I need to make sure that they are safe, they are sound,
0:27:37 > 0:27:39they have a roof over their heads.
0:27:39 > 0:27:46I will do anything I need to do to make sure they are safe and secure.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48One day things may be completely different but at the moment
0:27:49 > 0:27:55it's a bit hard to see that.
0:27:57 > 0:28:0112 million people watched Cathy Come Home and were shocked
0:28:01 > 0:28:04by its devastating portrayal of homelessness.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07It showed how an ordinary family could lose their home and
0:28:07 > 0:28:11in that sense nothing has changed, plus it was made when
0:28:11 > 0:28:16there was a huge housing shortage - again, no change there.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19So although it's been over 50 years since Ken Loach's iconic film
0:28:19 > 0:28:23was first shown on TV, it seems that Cathy's story
0:28:23 > 0:28:26is still being told today.
0:28:30 > 0:28:33Laura is now preparing to move out of the hostel
0:28:33 > 0:28:35and into a place of her own.
0:28:35 > 0:28:40Imogen has a new job and is saving for a deposit on a flat.
0:28:40 > 0:28:44And Kai now has his own place to live and he's been working
0:28:44 > 0:28:47for the charity which helped him off the streets and back
0:28:47 > 0:28:53on his feet, but his future is still far from certain.
0:29:11 > 0:29:13Hello, I'm Riz Lateef with your 90 second update.
0:29:13 > 0:29:15Ten people have been killed in an explosion
0:29:15 > 0:29:16on the underground in Russia.
0:29:16 > 0:29:19It happened in the city of St Petersburg.
0:29:19 > 0:29:21It's been treated as a terror attack.
0:29:21 > 0:29:23Seven people have been charged with violent disorder.
0:29:23 > 0:29:27It follows an attack on an asylum seeker at a bus stop in Croydon.
0:29:27 > 0:29:31One also faces a charge of racially aggravated GBH.
0:29:31 > 0:29:35Drowning in debt?
0:29:35 > 0:29:38We owe ?69 billion on plastic.
0:29:38 > 0:29:42A watchdog says credit card firms should force us to pay off debt