Country Kids Living with Poverty

rural north Norfolk, has a reputation as a genteel place

steeped in history. It's a magnet for well-heeled visitors who often

own second homes here, and in the also poverty and deprivation hidden

living below the poverty line, one of the highest figures in the

region. On the old council estate, cut off from the town centre by a

dual carriageway, local charity Holt Youth Project does what it can to

help. This is where the magic happens. It supports vulnerable

young people, and also provides a place they can get together,

something that's really difficult for kids to find in rurally isolated

places. Hello.It is run by Julie Alford. She grew up on the estate

and still lives here. There's never been a high school in Holt. It's a

bit unique really for the size. There is Gresham School. It is a

public school. Because there is no high school, that meant Holt did not

have other facilities for young people in the town. That must have

taken years of practice! There is nowhere else for them to go in the

evenings. It is about providing a safe environment for them to meet

with supervision but within that structure, giving them activities

to come in. Yes, about 30 minutes. Why have you come so early? At

home, we have nothing to do. We go and get some Coke and bread every

Thursday and come here. It is so good here you're prepared to stand

in the cold for half an hour. Yes. A lot of children here are from

families trying to get by on low incomes. Rob is full-time carer for

his wife who has long-term health problems. And dad to 11-year-old

Ben. Have a good Christmas. When did you stop working. I stopped

working about three years ago. That was to help Mel when she became more

ill. With buildings more spaced out and often less heat efficient than

in urban areas, and gas on the mains unavailable, heating costs much more

than the novel average -- national average.

Central heating? No. The fire heats the radiators. Which is our only

source of heating. We haven't got any gas or oil. Double glazing? On a

couple of the rooms and that is it. A government report last year

estimated that over 7 million people are living in fuel poverty in

England and it will get worse in the coming years. But unlike state fuel

provision for pensioners, there is no extra help for rural households

on low incomes. How you building up for Christmas? I have a few bits and

pieces for Ben. We ordered from the catalogue. We'll pay it off bit by

bit over the course of next year. And then start again. How long does

it take to pay off? It usually takes is just under a year to pay off.

But its needs must nowadays. You can't just go and pick the money off

the trees. What about the payday loan type schemes? With their

interest rates, I wouldn't touch them with a barge pole. They are

legalised loan sharks. Is there any light at the end of the tunnel for

you financially? If you win the Nearly 20 years, Julie run the youth

club with her husband David now entirely voluntary basis. We started

off in our living room 27 years ago, I think. We did things there,

silly games and videos and barbecues in the garden. Everything that

didn't cost too much money really. How many people? About 45 teenagers.

Standing room only. Yes, standing room only. Mind where you put your

the help of some very lovely people. They just heard our cry really and

wanted to support the community. Once support the work we were doing.

The project is always struggling to raise money. It receives no public

funding at all. But Norman Lamb Care Minister and North Norfolk MP is a

patron. And Julie hopes he can find some public money. You can turn

these young people 's lives around. Instead of being a burden within

society, they can be an asset for the community. They can work and pay

taxes and have a good life excavation mark the problem that I

see as just someone who is down the line from the powers that be, is the

fact that what we are doing with young people is recognised by the

government but they won't fund it. I have in mind dictating a letter.

Thank you. One last point, do you think this

sort of service should be funded by the state rather than being a

charity? I think it can be a mixture. I think the growing power

of this is it is actually community-based. The fact that Julie

comes from this community, these are people from the community and I

think if it just became a state thing, with state employees, it

would change completely in character. I am an enormously strong

supporter of what they are doing and I am constantly amazed at what they

can achieve. I don't know how you do it. What makes me really happy is

when I get my next belt for karate. Some of the main work the project

does it support young carers. Children who look after parents with

disabilities or severe illnesses. What makes you angry? I get angry

when people start calling me funny names. That's not very nice. That's

bullying. Two of these are Vicky and Francesca who helped care for their

disabled dad John. Studies show that people with disabilities are being

hit hardest by welfare reform. And with the poorest people struggling

most with rapidly rising food prices, a proposal for a new

supermarket on the estate is dividing opinion in the town.

for it. We have only got one and that, to be honest, for the people

that have the pennies, it is not too bad. But we find it exceedingly

expensive. It is cheaper for me to go into Norwich once a fortnight and

do a big shop in Norwich. You get more for your money. Come on, let's

go. I need a cup of tea. The number of children claiming free

school meals in England has risen each year since 2008. Those in Holt

who are eligible for them are also offered free karate classes by the

school. These help to promote self-confidence and a sense of

achievement as the kids advance through the martial arts belt

system. How did Ben get into karate in the first place? We just saw it

one night and we thought, it would be a normal childhood fan. He would

go one night but that is it and he's been in it ever since. You're

pleased he's doing karate? Yes, it has boosted his confidence. It has

not made him a target for bullies, I would say. He is confident. Today

they're taking part in a sponsored event to raise money for a local

cancer charity. I am very proud to do it. And I have to do 1000

techniques, 50 of those, 50 of those, 50 of those, 50 of those.

you know how much Ben has raised? �102. �102 for me would be to week

shopping. Petrol for a couple of months. It is a lot of money.

would Ben do with �102? I would dread to think. Give it to charity.

goes to Lucy. She is also supported by Holt Youth Project.

Wednesdays, we meet with different carers to do things that they would

not be able to do necessarily because of their home and family

environment. It is very much a me time for them. In order to do

activities with young carers, Julie has to go and collect most of them

from their homes, both in Holt and the outlying villages. There are

some relocations that they live in. There is no public transport, no

buses no trains. It's the villages, there is just one bus per week. That

is horrendously. The kids have been given a

discounted Christmas dinner by a because she's ill. She has had

cancer. For five years. And she's going to die sometime next year.

didn't know that. I'm really sorry. This may be her last birthday and

Christmas. There's a nasty myth that single parent families are somehow

responsible for their own misfortunes. Yah! Ha ha. I'm going

to my tree house. See you. Tree house? Yes, we've got a tree house

right this way. Amy and Lucy's used to be an average family. Dad Gareth

works as a taxi driver, and breeds rabbits as a hobby. Nikki's a

working mum. Hi. Hi. Don't be silly. But recently the cancer Nikki's been

fighting for several years has been diagnosed as terminal. How have the

girls been affected up until now with Nikki's illness? Um, it's been

a bit of a roller coaster. One minute they're up and quite angry,

the next minute they're being sad and crying. And because of their

age, I don't know if they fully accept what is going to happen...

That Nicola's not going to be around anymore. You all seem very stoical

or very... Calm. Um. When Nicola was first diagnosed I... Was very

emotional and upset. Um, but since then I've come to terms with what's

going on and trying to make the most of what we've got left. But with

Nicola she's calm on the front, but I know deep down she's terrified.

And what will be the practical consequences for you as a family.

There's only going to be one wage coming in. Um, obviously there's the

responsibility of raising the children just by myself. So, as

regards to my job, I don't know what's going to happen. We have very

little savings, we don't have no life insurance cover of any sort,

um, so it's going to be a real struggle. Finding the rent, council

tax. Electric bill, gas bills, water bills plus food without anything

else on top. Whether there comes a point where I have to move and find

a cheaper accommodation, whether I give up work, because a lot of

people are better off on benefits than what single parents are who's

working and don't earn a lot of money. And, uh, you've gotta think

of what's best for the children. How best to get the best..the most money

really decorated for Christmas in the building. Well, simply because

for some young people and families Christmas isn't necessarily a time

for celebrating because, you know, they might not necessarily be able

to afford as much as other families. Have you sent Santa a Christmas

list? Yes, I have sent my Christmas list. It's very short though.

know what's on Francesca's Christmas list? I do as well. She wants a

furby. She's asked for a lot of things. I know that families go into

debt for Christmas, because they want to please their children, they

want their children to be like everyone else. And, you know, that

causes a lot of pressure. Would you like a drink Francesca? Orange or

blackcurrant? Blackcurrant. Blackcurrant? So, for some families

that's a difficult time. And the children going back to school?

the children going back to school with... Some with excitement with

what they'd had for Christmas and others that would be very quiet or

maybe tell a...bit of a fib to not be left out or feel, um, second

class citizen really. But you have to deal with that without making

them feel worse about things, you have to in some cases kind of almost

go along with it. What was the present that your tooth fairy

brought you? Coat hanger. A coat hanger? A coat hanger? One, two,

three, four. The youth project has never received funding from North

Norfolk County Council. And in any case, the council axed their budget

for youth services in 2011 due to government-imposed spending cuts.

But the project also provides services such as training, which

could potentially qualify for other forms of council funding. I've got a

meeting with, um, someone called Tim Eyres who comes from Norfolk County

Council. They're very supportive of our work in the way that they say

that we're a role model for the county, um, but we've never been

able to persuade anyone to, um, from County Hall to give us any money.

Norman came to see us on Friday. He knows we're struggling with funding,

obviously. Yeah. But this letter is like gold dust to me. Where's the

piece of paper that says "This is..this is the project, this is

what it's about"? It's on the website. That will be really

important to have that, because then I can start to think about whether

or not the project is going to tick my boxes, and it is about ticking

boxes. I know that.Now you may or may not want to be plugged into the

system, but if you're not plugged into the system you probably won't

be able to access some of the funding streams. So does that help?

Well, no... Apart from the fact that I haven't come with a case of

money... No, it doesn't help!I'll do what I can... Thank you.Which is

about joining stuff up and making sure people know what's happening

here, the good work that's happening here. We've got a really good bus

now. And I would love to be in a world where I had a big pot of money

that I could just, you know, dish out. So would I.But sadly, my world

doesn't look like that. Bye, Tim. I'm just so frustrated cos I just

want to secure this work and I see the value of it, I see how it

changes people's lives...and I don't ill? Um, what I still do, I'm a

book-keeper. You're still working?I still work one day a week, uh, I go

out to work but I still do a couple of people from home. So, when you're

not well enough to work anymore, as a family you'll lose your income.

Yep. But it'll be a grad... Well hopefully, it'll be a gradual

decline, um, but as we don't know what the time frame is, it's very

difficult. Um, when you're told it's months rather than years, who's to

say it's not 12 months, 18 months? Or it could be six. Um, no-one's got

a magic book to look at, the doctors have no idea. Um, in some repects if

they did it would make it easier. Um, but we're hoping it's longer

rather than shorter. And though I hate to say so with your prognosis,

obviously there's going to be a double hit for your family of just

emotional tragedy and presumably a financial impact as well. Yep.Are

those things that sort of plague on your mind? In all honesty I try not

to think about it too much...um, but obviously it is always there in the

back of your mind. Do you think about the girls' future? Do you have

hopes and ambitions for them? Um, I hope they both... Don't answer

if you don't feel up to it. I hope they both achieve everything they

want to. I just hope they do the best they can. And if they want to

go to college or university I just hope that they manage to. Um,

obviously finances and grants and everything will play a big part in

that, um, I mean Amy at the moment just wants to be a nurse, Lucy just

wants to own a Pigani Zonda. What's that, a scooter? A very fast car, in

bright orange. We have told her that she'll need to find a millionaire,

um, to be able to afford one of those, but yeh, she's set her mind

on one of those ever since she saw one on Top Gear. She set her mind...

It's Saturday night but fund-raising for the Youth Project never ends.

wow, hello, Ellen. Have you got a new dress on? Did your mum buy it or

your nan? We're going to a very posh dinner dance to support the Holt

Youth Project's North Norfolk Young Carers Group. It's all been

organised by North Norfolk Rotary. It's really lovely of them to do it

and without them we wouldn't be able to deliver this service. But part of

me feels is sometimes really embarrassing having to kind of

almost beg, steal and borrow from your own community when money's

tight anyway, it's not really fair I don't think. But without them I

don't know what we'd do. We'll try and get the girls back by 11. Come

on then, lovely girls. But they can have a little dance and enjoy

themselves, forget their worries. How much are they? They're a pound

each. I'll have ten pounds worth please. That's right, good girl.

Thank you very much. Yeah, I sold a whole book. Five left. Can I

persuade you? No, don't be shy. have five, then. Thank you very

much. �105... All that money. kind lady here has took it upon

herself to give us a cheque for, um, the young carers. Shall we give her

a big hug? Thank you, thank you so much. It's very kind of you, thank

you. This is Lucy and Amy, and their mummy's really, really poorly at the

moment. Hello! Girls. Be careful you don't trip over, OK. See this is the

way they get it out of their system. And be careful, the plates are very

hot. I know the plates are very hot, Amy's just told me the plates are

very hot. It's really nice to see them happy and letting their hair

down. They're what makes it all worthwhile, seeing them so happy.

Are you enjoying it? Yeah! This is genuinely lovely, but should

children's welfare be dependent upon some kind people having a posh

dinner? There's only so much that a community should have to help. And

it should, it should be the topping up, rather than the bread and butter

money. Sadly, Amy and Lucy's mum, Nikki, passed away early in the new

year. Life teaches some children not to hope for much. But Julie and her

team continue to support the family. Poverty, of course, can be a