No child should feel alone. Making a difference OUR IMPACT IN THE NORTH EAST 2017/18

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1 No child should feel alone Making a difference OUR IMPACT IN THE NORTH EAST 2017/18

2 We believe no child should feel alone. Each time I meet the young people we work with, I am struck by their incredible personal journeys. Their strength and resilience inspires us all to be ambitious about the change we make not only for individuals, but also for the world around them. I am proud that over the past year The Children s Society has supported so many young people to overcome challenges in their lives. This vital support comes both through our direct work and through our campaigning, where we can help improve the lives of young people we may never meet. Measuring and demonstrating the impact of the breadth of our work is difficult, but it s critically important to understand where change has occurred and our contribution, so that we can tenaciously strive to do the very best we can for children and young people. Our 2018 Regional Impact Reports aim to offer an honest account of the difference we are making in young people s lives. We believe that no child should feel alone, and this is why we are relentless in our desire to learn more about how we can make a difference in the lives of those who need us most. Many thanks, Matthew Reed Chief Executive The Children s Society 2

3 Services 2017/18 Our SCARPA services services supported children who were going missing from home or at risk of sexual exploitation, to stay safe. Our SMART services provided group work and case work for refugee families. Our Youth at Risk services helped young people in school to achieve greater independence as they prepared for further education, employment and training. New services 2018 We expanded our Youth at Risk services to include peer mentoring in schools with a focus on mental health issues. Anti Knife Crime Newcastle added to our Youth at Risk services by working with those at risk of criminal exploitation. 3

4 Campaigning work The Debt Trap Problem debt leaves families and young people feeling stressed, anxious and depressed. Children living in families struggling with debt are five times more likely to be unhappy than children in families who don t have difficulty with debt. We ve been campaigning to end the Debt Trap for families since May In that time, we have tackled many of the biggest issues for families in debt, including: n Payday loan advertising on children s TV. n Energy companies and their debt collection practices. n Local councils and their use of bailiffs in homes of children and vulnerable young people. In 2017/18 we won a commitment from Government to introduce a Breathing Space for families in problem debt to the Financial Guidance and Claims Bill. The introduction of this measure will give families time and space to repay their debts with no rising fees or visits from intimidating bailiffs, helping 530,000 young people. Locally, through our campaigning work we persuaded six North East councils to exempt care leavers from having to pay council tax, impacting over 1,200 young people. The councils included Stockton-on-Tees, Durham, Sunderland, South Tyneside, Hartlepool and Darlington. 4

5 Breathing Space for families in problem debt helped 530,000 young people. 6 North East councils agreed to exempt care leavers from council tax. 1,240 care leavers benefitted from this change 5

6 Spotlight SCARPA services support children who are going missing from home or at risk of sexual exploitation, to stay safe. SCARPA also provides specialist training courses and one-to-one advice to professionals working in social care, schools, foster care, children s homes and the wider voluntary sector. These sessions increase understanding of how to prevent and respond to sexual exploitation. Of the children and young people SCARPA worked with this year: 85% said their lives improved overall after working with us. 78% said they felt safer afterwards. 79% said their emotional well-being improved. 68% had more hopes and dreams for the future. 6

7 This service is irreplaceable, the staff are all amazing and it deserves more funding to keep it going as long as possible. Young person 7

8 Key results 84% of children and young people said that their lives improved after working with us. 34 the number of times our young people s participation group, SCARPA Squad, met to help us design and develop new projects for those going missing or at risk of exploitation. 54 families We worked secured with regular income under Section 17 following intensive 391 casework. children and young people. 60 families secured immigration 443advice children from solicitors. and young people reached via preventative work. 8

9 Needs in the area 156,349 number of children in poverty. 879 number of assessments of children in need due to concerns about sexual exploitation. 35,260 approximate number of children with a diagnosable mental health condition. 23,740 number of children classified as children in need. 8,123 number of incidents reported to police of children going missing. 2,640 number of care leavers under 25. 9

10 Demographics 61% 7% 11% 0.5% 21% 51% are female Asian or Asian British Black or Black British Mixed Heritage Other ethnicities White and White British 10% 6% 49% are male 84% Aged 9 or under Aged 10 to 18 Aged 19 to 24 10

11 Natalie Natalie was sexually abused by her stepdad from the age of four. Eventually he was put in prison, but when he was released, Natalie s mum chose to take him back, leaving Natalie and her siblings in foster care. Natalie struggled to understand her mother s way of thinking and her older sister found it too difficult to cope. She took her own life when Natalie was nine. When Natalie was at her most vulnerable, she met an older man who groomed her. The relationship turned abusive and he forced Natalie to do drug deals for him and have sex to pay off his debts. Natalie was homeless when she was referred to The Children s Society and met her project worker, Kelly. They started meeting regularly, and Kelly gradually built up trust with Natalie. They began to explore her past experiences and understand her addiction. Natalie is now 25 and regularly attends one-to-one sessions with Kelly to recover from her years of trauma. Natalie writes poems about her experiences, and in the future hopes to talk about her journey to support her rehabilitation and inspire others. By the age of 15, I had been in 47 placements. How are you expected to trust people when you re passed around and no one takes the time to talk to you? I was lonely, I was scared. Going home to an empty flat, with no friends, no support, no anything, was too much. 11

12 Right now in Britain there are children and young people who feel scared, unloved and unable to cope. The Children s Society works with these young people, step by step, for as long as it takes. We listen. We support. We act. There are no simple answers so we work with others to tackle complex problems. Only together can we make a difference to the lives of children now and in the future. Because no child should feel alone. Find out more at childrenssociety.org.uk Contact us Rob Jackson: Area Director t: e: rob.jackson@childrenssociety.org.uk Rob Dickinson: Business Development t: e: rob.dickinson@childrenssociety.org.uk Or to donate to support our work please contact: Helen Whiteley: Regional Relationship Manager t: The Children s Society The copyright of all material appearing in this publication belongs to The Children s Society. It may not be reproduced, duplicated or copied by any means without our prior written consent. All photographs posed by models. Laura McCluskey, Stella Scott. Charity Registration No AI002e/1118