20/03/2017 Inside Out North West

Hello and welcome to Inside Out North-West

Tonight, we investigate the claims that Manchester city

centre is in the grip of a shocking drug epidemic.

They're coming from London, they're coming from Birmingham, everywhere.

They are coming from all over the show to Manchester

because they know it's one of those places that you can get Spice

We report on elderly loneliness and reveal how Strictly champion

Hopefully, she will enjoy this surprise.

And we discover a hidden treasure - a lost canal that passes

I think this is one of the most beautiful canals in the country

It's been described as a drug epidemic among

Addiction to the former legal high Spice is now so widespread that many

homeless people are begging in the city centre

Jacey Norman has investigated the story behind the recent

Disturbing images of homeless people in Manchester apparently under

the influence of drugs in a zombie-like state have

It s being blamed on the drug known as Spice'.

The former legal high is now being made illegally

There are claims that Manchester is in the grip of a Spice epidemic,

with people travelling from other parts of the UK to

If Spice use in Manchester really is becoming an epidemic,

what impact is it having on our homeless community

and is seizing it from the streets really the answer?

The charity Lifeshare has been providing help to young homeless

people in Manchester and Salford for 30 years.

Support worker Julie Boyle says there has been a dramatic increase

in the use of Spice by the clients she sees since the drug

How big a problem is Spice amongst the homeless

We ve never had so many police cars, ambulances and other services

at our office as we have since the ban actually,

We ve had clients who have always been very, you know,

sociable with other clients, now they kind of sit

If we raise a concern, they get quite aggressive towards us.

And a lot of them are just turning on each other

A lot of them are begging to support their Spice habit

because Manchester is kind of the central hub where Spice

So people who never thought they would beg, and kind of looked

down on people who begged, are now actually begging themselves,

who said they would never do that in their lives,

When you first smoke it, it kills you off,

One former Spice user agreed to talk about his reasons

for taking the drug, as long as we didn t identify him.

Like, it makes me feel relaxed, calm.

You need that kind of calm when you re sleeping on the streets,

Because if you didn t have the Spice and you re sleeping homeless, rough,

you feel paranoid all the time, you know what I mean?

Whereas the Spice takes that feeling away, you re not arsed.

When you take it, how long do the effects last for?

But when you get addicted to it, it doesn t last long.

It s like as soon as you ve had a spliff, you need another one.

Or you need a pipe, you need another one,

And what kind of effect would you say that it s having

on people that are begging on the streets of Manchester,

Well, they re starting begging because they smoke Spice.

They used to be like normal kids, then they have a hit of that.

Probably self-harm, problems at home that they start smoking it,

I don t know why, because it s horrible at first.

But when they do start smoking it, that s why they start

begging because they need the money and it s...

If you don t, if you go an hour without smoking a spliff,

You start sweating, being sick, physically sick

And you just can t care about nothing, you just want...

You can t walk the streets without seeing a Spice-head,

In ten minutes if we was to walk through town, we d see over

It s noticeable to everyone in Manchester at the moment is that

Would you say that that s got worse because of Spice?

They re coming from London, they re coming from Birmingham, everywhere.

They were coming from all over the show to Manchester

because they know it s one of the places that you can get

And it s just ruining lives really, you know what I mean?

So what is Greater Manchester Police doing about the problem?

We're dealing with Spice every day, coming across people who have

We're dealing with people who are behaving in really strange

ways and we re dealing with people causing crime and

anti-social behaviour because of their addiction.

Is the problem worse now it s illegal?

Before we saw dealing from head shops and small shops.

All that dealing has been displaced onto the street now.

We re using a lot of the tactics we used to unpick cannabis dealing

in Piccadilly Gardens to now tackle Spice dealing.

Last week, we arrested a 37-year-old in the Piccadilly Gardens area

with ?400 in cash and 278 wraps of Spice.

We ve had two convictions in the last fortnight.

Depressingly, one of those is a 16-year-old.

It s claimed that as many as 95% of the city s rough sleeper

population are now taking Spice and that this is one of the main

reasons why Manchester has seen an increase in begging.

I don t think money should be given to beggars anyway.

By stopping giving people money, it will stop people getting Spice

because they re going to have to go through the rattle.

I think that if you re going to give someone

Go up to them, approach them and ask them if they re hungry,

or are they cold, then get them something warm or get them some

food, but make sure they re hungry at the time because a lot of people

who are getting given food, they re just throwing it away.

And a lot of people who are getting clothes, they don t want it,

Last year, the City Council, in partnership with homeless

charities in Manchester, launched a campaign called

Big Change to encourage members of the public not to give

There is certainly a connection between begging with drugs.

There s a connection with alcohol as well.

We know from research in the North-East there s

a likely to be a connection to organised crime.

People are organised to come to the city centre and beg in order

Do you think that if we don't give money to people who are begging

the back might actually lead them into crime?

Well, giving money to beggars keeps them in crime.

Which is why we set up the Big Change campaign that

The money goes to really legitimate charities,

voluntary sector organisations with a good track record of working

If people donate - and it doesn t have to be

money, it can be goods - to those charitable organisations

then they will know they re really helping homeless people.

If they give on the streets the odds are they are not.

Back at Lifeshare, the charity is providing help to young homeless

That has got everything in it, if you want to keep that one.

Julie Boyle is in no doubt that the long-term solution

to the problem is to get people off the streets.

We do find some people in accommodation are still taking

Spice, but we also find that when they get

So that criminality element of it will stop, as well.

So I think again, trying to, you know, specialise maybe

for people with those habits, as is done for alcohol

and other drug issues, if they were included,

as in it was allowed in supported accommodation,

It wouldn t resolve it, but it would help.

But until such help arrives, does she ever think she s fighting

a losing battle trying to help those still on the streets?

There s never nothing that we can do.

There s always some way around things or some way

There s always something that can be done.

Research shows that social isolation doesn't only cause loneliness,

Lancashire has been labelled a loneliness hotspot,

but there is one woman from Lytham St Annes who is hoping

to combat the problem of elderly loneliness by making dreams come

Bev Sykes knows what it is like to suffer from loneliness.

She experienced it herself after the death of her

It is why she set up the companionship group

I get so much pleasure out of seeing other people enjoying

It genuinely warms my heart because I have experienced

loneliness and I know what it's like and it's a horrible,

As well as panting and keep-fit classes, the group enjoy day trips

and other social events but, above all, they have fun.

Can you imagine what it must be like when people are sitting

in on their own and nobody phones, nobody rings, nobody calls.

Well, my wife passed away getting on for three years ago now.

Alan Lee joined Just Good Friends after experiencing terrible

loneliness following the death of his wife, Pat.

When you lose some after so long, 40 years, God, you're

You are probably only half the person you used to be.

But to get out and make that effort and meet other people,

it gives you confidence in yourself that, of course, you've lost.

When I went to Just Good Friends, it did turn my life around.

You never forget, but this is what Pat would really want me to do.

And it sounds like there is a lovely network of people

at Just Good Friends that help with that?

They do, and they help each other, as well.

And social isolation doesn't only cause loneliness.

Research shows it is also bad for your help.

It's believed that being socially isolated can be as bad as smoking

ten to 15 cigarettes a day, with a higher likelihood

of long-term conditions such as diabetes and strokes.

At his surgery in St Annes, Dr Russell Thorpe sees a lot

of patients who are experiencing loneliness.

It addresses both physical and mental activity and it also

enriches people's lives and they can often give to the group as much

It's been an amazing facility that Mrs Sykes has set up.

Another way the group spreads happiness is by

Two ladies wanted to fly in a hot-air balloon.

Another member of the group, in her 80s, wanted to ride

on the back of a motorbike with Carl Fogarty, and Bev

But Bev is facing her biggest challenge, making one special

Christine does an awful lot on the committee.

She does a lot of welfare, she saw raffles.

She does a lot of welfare, she sorts out raffles.

And her wish is to dance with somebody from Strictly.

So, while Bev set about making it happen, I popped round to see

Christine for a cup of tea and to find out more

Why did you get involved in Just Good Friends?

What was the main reason for you going there?

Even though I've got four sons and four grandsons,

three of them are scattered down south and it's not easy to get

to them and they can't be here all the while.

What is it about dancing that you love so much?

I don't know, it's just a nice feeling to be

I like Anton Du Beke because he's polite and treats you as a lady.

You don't want to be looking down like that when you're

No, I want to be able to look in their eyes.

And where better to make Christine's Strictly dream come true

The group had come for afternoon tea and a dance, but what Christine

doesn't know is that a very special guest is about to give her

When Ore Oduba was last in Blackpool, he stunned

the Strictly judges before going on to win the competition.

Today, he's back to cause another big surprise.

It was such a special weekend for me and for everybody on the show,

but I really feel like this is going to be such

She is a massive Strictly fan and, hopefully,

So, Bev, I don't know about you, but I'm really excited about this.

Does Christine have any idea what's going to happen?

Absolutely no idea at all and I'm so excited for her.

What do you think she is going to do when she sees Ore?

Because she was saying before that the person she really wants

What is she going to do when Ore turns up?

All right, let's go and surprise Christine.

It's the moment of truth, and Christine still

We just are going to start really slow because I've

It brings so many wonderful memories back.

Did you have any idea at all this was going to happen?

A complete surprise and I'm really, really pleased.

Bev and I were watching from the sidelines in tears.

She is better than me, that's for sure.

She was very quick to tell me, "You need to learn a bit more".

It's been a while, it's been a while, but I hope

I know I've got lots more to learn, but it's been a real, real pleasure.

This was your dream wasn't it, your wish?

And thanks to Bev as well because you've been

She is ace, she does so much in Just Good Friends

and Just Good Friends is where the magic happens

And do you know what, I don't think she's ever going to let go!

I think you'll be here for the night.

When you find a good partner, you never let go,

This is a new thing, Strictly Come Dancing 2017,

It is one of the Northwest's hidden treasures, a lost canal that passes

through some of the region's was beautiful countryside. The Northern

reaches of the Lancaster Canal has been off-limits to Boots for

decades. Peter Marshall takes a rare trip along these waters and meets

the people determined to reopen them for the boating world.

This is a journey few get the chance to enjoy. The winding rural waters

of the Lancaster Canal's northern reaches. For decades, this 40 mile

stretch as been off-limits to all but a select few, unable to be

navigated, crisscrossed and blocked by concrete reminders of a more

modern age. Overgrown in some areas, filled in and long forgotten in

others. That can time be turned back? A determined group of

volunteers and enthusiasts are not prepared to let this canal be lost

forever. I think this is one of the most beautiful canals in the country

and I've cruised almost all of them. You just glide along and look at the

countryside. Do you think you will ever see a day when Boots will come

along here again? Will I see it? Is that a reference to my age?! In its

heyday, the called that the black-and-white canal. Blackford to

the caller carried north to Kendall, white for the limestone is brought

south from Cumbrian quality -- from Cumbrian quarries. The navigable

section of the Lancaster Canal from Preston to Khan ripped tracks canal

boats from all over the country. But once these boats reached just north

of Carnforth, they can go no further. So, with just arrived in

Tewitfield, and unfortunately this is as far as you can go in the boat.

There has been an embankment built up here to enable the brood over the

motorway and that's causing a big blockage. And a road blockages

aren't the biggest problem. Well, this is it, the shape of motoring to

come... Wendy M6 arrived in the 60s, despite protest, Ed intersected the

Northern reaches of the canal in three places, effectively closing

it. Are these obstacles insurmountable? Absolutely not. They

are significant challenges that our engineers have been working on

solutions over the past number of years and we believe we have

solutions to each of the blockages we encounter. Hand on heart, do you

think this lost canal will have a future? We know it matters to people

so this canal has a great future ahead. Just beyond the first

blockage are Tewitfield Locks. Undue since 1942, they were once a gateway

to an industrial highway. The canal carries its final commercial traffic

70 years ago. From here it's on to rural Cumbria and some of the

Welcome aboard. At Crooklands, I Welcome aboard. At Crooklands, I

mean top of the crew of the only boat that still gets the chance

regular deep to seal the northern beaches. The 28th temp one is

operated by the Lancaster Canal trust to promote its long campaign

to reopen the northern beaches. What would it mean to you to be able to

ride a canal boat again the stretch on a regular basis? It would mean so

much. I might be 100 by then, but it would mean so much just to be able

to do it. It is pleasant coming along here. But if you got the nice

flat stretch up here, in the quiet countryside, listening to the sheep

and the birds, then that's perfect. What is so special about this place?

Where do you start? You leave Preston and you come north and

adjust their daily gets better. You just can't beat it. The wildlife

here, as you saw on the way up, the Swans. We had a little flotilla in

front of us. There's always something to see, something

different. When we are not stirring up the silk you can actually watch

the fish, the water is so clear. The Waterwitch seals three of the nine

miles of the Northern beaches that are still water. The final five

miles into Kendall are totally overgrown or completely fill them.

Ancient canal bridges now spanning fields rather than throwing water.

But the Canal trust teams are on training -- changing that. Today

they are clearing up one of the Canal's most impressive structures,

the 378 yard long Hincaster Tunnel. You are very passionate about this?

Yes, that wouldn't be far from the fruit. A canal not? I would accept

that. What drives that passion? Industrial archaeology and the feat

of engineering. As a civil engineer myself I have tremendous regard for

what they achieved 200 years ago with hands, barrows and spades.

Their passion is achieving results. A short walk from Hincaster Tunnel

is what is called the first furlong. Before they started working,

district was totally overgrown, neither is water again. As this home

movies from the 1940s shoes, people have always been drawn to canals.

Here it is a motor barge trip along the canal to Hest Bank. Today they

continue to boost tourism and local economies and many believe Cumbria's

forgotten northern beaches will do the same. So, no sign of that night,

but in its heyday this would've been a busy canal. This was the motorway

of its time. Hard to believe we are walking were once many boats sealed.

The Lancaster Canal regeneration partnership has just secured

?184,000 to reinstate the towpath along this field in section from

Campbell to Natland, one small step on the way to full restoration. You

don't have to do it all at once. There are lots of other canals were

a bit by bit blockages are being moved and the navigable length gets

longer. Today's restoration estimate is around ?100 million. Enthusiasts

say it is a price worth paying. When people arrive at a terminus by boat

they need to go out to be entertained, they need to stock up,

they will spend money in the community -- in the community, they

will sightsee. Yes, it will benefit. I might be looking at my 90s,

possibly even 101, but I would love to see it open. I really want to see

it open and if I'm carried into here in my bath chair I will be at the

opening ceremony if I'm here! It is beautiful now when it's not a canal.

It would be so much more beautiful when it was. It has the capacity to

bring so many added benefits to small communities. There is an

advert, I saw it years ago and it is so true, just add water. And it does

make such a difference. What an incredible hidden treasure.

That result from us for this week but Inside Out is back next Monday

at 7:30pm. Until then, goodbye. Thomas Simon O'Brien belts between

the streets of Liverpool to explore the mystery of the Williamson

tunnels. This is extraordinary. It is impressive, isn't it? Yes, it

really is. It is lovely workmanship that is totally unnecessary, it

doesn't serve any purpose. Hello, I'm Riz Lateef

with your 90-second update. Did some of President Trump's

team collude with Russia The head of the FBI says

they are investigating the claims, but says there's no evidence

President Obama bugged Trump Tower. The Prime Minister will give

the formal go-ahead for Brexit Theresa May will trigger what's

known as Article 50, kicking off two years

of divorce negotiations with Google has apologised

for letting adverts appear next A number of big British companies

like Marks and Spencer She was known as "The Forces

Sweetheart" in World War Two. So where better to project a huge

image of Dame Vera Lynn to celebrate The White Cliffs

of Dover, of course. And the world's biggest flawless

pink diamond has gone on display in London,

before it's sold in