This International Women’s Day, we share a blog from our Chief Executive Leigh Elliott. Leigh’s journey to leader of Children North East, a role she has held since 2016, is an inspiring one. Previously working with Northumbria Police, Rolls Royce and John Lewis, throughout her career she has been committed to empowering the futures of babies children and young people; including as the Chair of school governors, contributing to several Northumberland County Council committees representing youth, and as vice-chair of trustees at the Ashington Learning Partnership Trust.

Growing up in Ashington in the 1970s, her childhood took place in the heart of the mining strikes. She saw first-hand how families could be thrown into poverty and the impact that could have on their lives together. She has previously shared, in a North East Times article, “It made me realise that a child never chooses to live in poverty. It’s not because they have uncaring parents, it’s forced upon them through injustice.”

In this blog, Leigh explores the ‘Wicked Problem’ of a charity tackling child poverty within our region and how the work of Children North East and our peers in the VCSE sector seek to support the first of the UN Sustainable Goals: ‘to end poverty in all forms’.

The ‘Wicked Problem’ is a complex interconnected social issue. As a leader within a North East children’s charity, I am at the heart of an organisation continually working to alleviate and eradicate poverty in the region whilst influencing meaningful change far beyond our borders.

At Children North East, we continually look at root causes of poverty in our approach and how to address the growing levels of need in our region. The North East has the second-highest statistics in England for child poverty sitting outside of London¹. This wicked problem aligns with the first of the UN Sustainable Development goal – No Poverty – a call to arms to end poverty in all its forms everywhere. This blog aims to present how difficult the wicked problem is to overcome and the barriers in the way of achieving this long-term goal.

So why is it a wicked problem to find a solution to? Firstly, it is one which requires continual monitoring and development as regional, national and international circumstances change. It is a problem that impacts on people through various social contexts and does not have a one size fits all solution. Poverty causes many social issues. Whilst charities strive to eliminate its cause, alleviate its impact and campaign to governments, we mainly exist as a failure of governments providing sufficiently for all within its society.

A key issue is that within our current system, governments aim to please the majority vote with limited resources, and therefore marginalised people in society are failed. Charities attempt to resolve this failure, which in turn is a wicked problem as they also have limited resources.

Since the financial crash in 2008 and the era of austerity charities have faced many challenges. We have seen an increased demand on our services, alongside millions of pounds in local authorities spending cuts impacting our income.  Austerity also saw rapid reductions in public donations, placing greater pressure on charities to serve their communities. The impact of the pandemic hit the poorest the hardest, moving the resolve of the wicked problem further away, something which can only be expected to get worse under the pressures of the Cost of Living Crisis.

The SDG goal to end poverty outlines that one progressive objective for societies is to ‘Implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and the vulnerable’ is very clear. The UN, like the voluntary sector, are known for their high morals, being advocates and guardians, they are important parts of encouraging social self-organisation. They both give a voice to the unheard which governments refer to as ‘hard to reach’ and the voluntary sector refer to as ‘easy to ignore’. They are both committed to the long-term plan and have ongoing resilience, commitment to the cause and extreme loyalty.

Whilst the UN advocates for these social protection systems to be well designed and in place in all countries, an important role of our charity, along with our peers, is to continually advocate to shape and mould them to become fit for purpose. The systems we aim for are fundamental to ensuring no one is left behind. Both charities and the UN recognise that leadership needs to champion inclusiveness to achieve this goal. In attempting to address the wicked problem both take bold transformative steps which are urgently needed to shift onto a sustainable resilient path.

It is a difficult truth that the voluntary sector, whilst trying to tackle a wicked problem, is absorbed with alleviating it daily. As a society, we face the reality that alleviation is a temporary solution and that without change to fundamental social structures and policies the problem remains. Impactful outcomes are difficult to prove when we are trying to power systemic change, rather than an instant fix, and we now face the challenge that the pandemic has pushed the goal of ending poverty much further away.

Voluntary sectors resources are limited and therefore tackling the wicked problem is a wicked problem in itself. The government have proven to society that their cross-party approach to eliminate child poverty by 2020 was lip service and in 2016, the Welfare Reform and Work Act abolished the Child Poverty Act, including the targets to reduce poverty and the important measure of poverty based on family income. The result of their approach has seen the rise in child poverty with figures being forecast to be an all-time high².

Without a whole collaborative approach to this wicked problem, it sadly remains that the voluntary sector continues to strive to alleviate the issue and continually campaign whilst people are being failed by government.

Lessons learned are that a wicked problem can seem so far away that we are forced to continually work on alleviating the problem to help those in need now, which can mask the seriousness of the problem overall making it less visible, less urgent of a problem to those in power.

Everyday as a charity we ask ourselves: do we allow children to suffer and take a gamble whether the government would address the problem quicker? The answer we reach, is that we must use our always limited powers to support changes to people’s lives in the short-term, but beat the drum of change on the regional, national and international stage. We must ask for a hand up, not a hand out by creating a platform for those in poverty to voice to their needs and challenge our governments to fufil their responsibility to end this wicked problem.

¹ www.nechildpoverty.org.uk/facts/

²  www.actionforchildren.org.uk/blog/where-is-child-poverty-increasing-in-the-uk

Pulling up to the third petrol station in six hours, Stephen Hannah and his cycling partner, Paul Hume, hoped that this time they would be able to find some shelter to go with their hot drinks.

As expert bike riders, they knew the 320-mile endurance challenge they had set themselves would throw some surprises at them, but not this.

Stephen, who is Head of Year 9 at Jarrow School, planned the cycle ride to recreate the infamous 1936 Jarrow March, hoping to both raise money for our charity, and awareness about the impact of poverty on young people.

Yet, what had been predicted as a quiet period between two red weather warnings, turned into an epic feat of endurance lasting over 24 hours.

“When we started at 4pm, we felt lucky to see such great conditions,” explains Stephen, “The sky was bright and clear, the wind was behind us and we were making great time.”

“Then over time, we found the nature threw everything it could at us. At 10pm we had to deal with two punctures, then as we got back into the ride the torrential rain came.”

It would be another two hours of riding in high winds, frozen rains and 1-degree temperatures until they found somewhere to grab a hot drink and short break. Another eight until they reached a Starbucks where they could sit back, dry their clothes and reflect on how to progress. At this point, they had covered over 160 miles and were halfway to their goal.

“A lot of people think that to get to the finish line of endurance challenges your ‘sportsmanship’ will motivate you to the finish line. In reality, it’s more your problem-solving skills that get you there and keep you safe.

“You have to stay level-headed and ask the important questions. When is the next safe end to the challenge? What can we fix now? If I get to breaking point, will I ever want to ride a bike again?”

In the end, the duo decided that reaching 24 hours was the perfect milestone to safely end the challenge, during which the pair totalled over 250 miles.

“The funny ending to our epic adventure was that one of my friends happened to be passing Wetherby Services where we had finished, so we were able to hitch a very quick lift!”

Stephen hopes that in addition to the £1,100 raised so far, his journey will share a positive message for the young people resonate with the young people he works with.

“I think there is a valuable lesson that might resonate with teenagers. There is a lot of pressure on young men in particular to “man up” and not appear to be vulnerable at all. We were experienced, we did everything right, but we still had to make the sensible decision to stay safe rather than be heroes. For example, I have a 10-month-old baby at home, I was choosing to be a good parent and partner by staying safe, not showing weakness.

“Cycling together we were stronger, but only if we admitted when things were difficult.”

Lucy, Stephen’s wife, said, “I am very proud of my husband Stephen and his impressive levels of resilience. He is always looking for ways to raise money for excellent causes and is passionate about the welfare of young people. He is not afraid to put himself out there by pushing himself to his limits. I truly admire his strength of character.”

Stephen chose Children North East because of they work they do across the region supporting young people impacted by poverty, the impact of which he sees often in his work.

“Right now 37% of children in the North East live in poverty. That can make a huge impact on their confidence, opportunities and daily experience. Children North East do great work with young people in schools and in their communities to change this.”

You can make a donation to Stephen’s fundraiser at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/pedalforcause and follow his Pedal for Cause Twitter (@pedalforcause) to stay in touch with future fundraising endurance challenges.

The UK Cost of the School Day project works with schools and local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales to ensure that all children, regardless of financial background, can take part and be happy at school. ​

The Cost of the School Day in England: Pupils’ Perspectives is a report focusing on our research so far in England. It highlights some of the positive work being carried out by schools to ensure that opportunities are affordable and inclusive, while also drawing attention to the multitude of ways that pupils from low-income families face exclusion and stigma.​

We, along with our partners Child Poverty Action Group,  hope that by listening to the issues identified by children and young people, readers of this report will take action to bring about greater equity of experience and opportunity within our education system.

Read the Report Now

Selected Findings

Curriculum and learning: Pupils experiencing poverty in England are financially excluded from full participation in a wide range of school subjects and activities, including PE, music, swimming and art and design. ​

Stigma: Day-to-day practices in English schools often unintentionally draw attention to family incomes and make children feel embarrassed and different. These include expensive uniform policies, non-uniform days and requirements to bring in material possessions like pencil cases. ​

School fun: Families are borrowing money to pay for school activities like school trips, not wanting children to lose out on these valuable learning opportunities.

School food: Policies and practices relating to food in school often mean that children experiencing poverty don’t have the same options as their peers at lunchtime.

Key Recommendations for Government

1. Provide adequate funding to schools to ensure all curriculum-related costs are removed for pupils and all children have the resources and tools they need to fully participate in school activities both at home and at school. ​

2. Provide local authorities with additional funding and a statutory responsibility to help families with school costs through targeted initiatives such as school clothing grants and subsidies for trips. Initiatives like this already exist in all other UK nations. ​

3. Provide universal free school meals to school-aged children in England so that all pupils have equitable access to food while at school. ​

4. Provide a statutory framework, strategy and additional ring-fenced funding so schools in England can provide programmes, activities and services that go beyond the core function of classroom education, such as breakfast and after-school clubs.

Key recommendations for schools

1. Plan all teaching, events and activities with affordability and accessibility in mind. Wherever possible, remove or minimise charging for school-related activities. ​

2. Explore and review current school costs. Take a holistic view of the school year and determine the cost of full participation in school life. ​

3. Ensure that all staff, including non-teaching staff, are aware of the nature, causes, extent and impact of poverty and how to reduce the stigma that children can face in school. ​

4. Provide meaningful opportunities for pupils and families to give feedback on their experience of school with a focus on school costs. ​

Read the Report Now

To mark Zero Discrimination Day, Emily Miller, aged 15, explores the experiences and challenges faced by young people living in poverty, how poverty can impact their health outcomes and how she believes we can make a start at a better future. Emily volunteers with Children North East as a Young Advisor on our Young Advisors panel, which gives a platform to young people to share their voice, perspectives and experiences to inform our work and promote inclusive social change.

Young people in poverty are born into a situation that is out of their control, then left to deal with the stigma of poverty. Even if they tried to gain some control by getting a job, that would stigmatise them even more as it would be more difficult to get a full education or have a normal childhood.

There are direct health impacts of being in poverty, which are made worse by the emotional stress caused by how others might perceive you. People on the outside look at and treat people in poverty differently. This has an impact on young people’s self-esteem. If you ask people my age, they will tell you that they do care about people’s opinions. This can make it harder for young people to access healthcare because they’re worried about being judged. They may end up without the same opportunities as people not dealing with the effects of poverty.

We need to increase understanding, which will make people more willing to help and more willing to ask for help when they need it.

We are told to eat healthily, but this can be especially difficult when someone does not have the resources or skills. For people in poverty, there is likely to be a lot of different problems to focus on. It is hard work being worried all the time and this makes it far easier to cook unhealthy frozen food instead of a fresh nutritious meal. I cooked a meal for my family, it took me over 2 hours, and left me feeling tired after school and filled up the rest of my day. I cannot imagine how I would feel if I did this after a long shift at work then had to take care of other duties as a parent. These issues are due to not having enough time and resources and lead to children not getting the right nutrition, contributing to things like childhood obesity.

Solutions are difficult to find and it can seem impossible to get everyone on board and agreeing on one plan. Before we start thinking about a solution, we need to destigmatise people in poverty and not throw blame, which only makes the problem worse. We need to increase understanding, which will make people more willing to help and more willing to ask for help when they need it.

We need to include young people’s voices in building this understanding. The perspective of a young person going through poverty is different to an adult. A young person deals with overwhelming stigma making them ashamed, due to not being able to ask for things their friends have. Many children grow up with access to the things they need and can ask for them without feeling guilty. For young people in poverty this isn’t true. They might not feel like they can ask for things they would like due to believing they already know the answer is going to be no.

It is a different world now to when my parents were younger and while lots of the same problems exist, the impacts have changed. If we base our understanding and education only on their experiences, it will not reflect today’s world and young people in poverty won’t get the help they really need.

On Zero Discrimination Day, 1 March, people around the globe celebrate the right of everyone to live a full and productive life—and live it with dignity. Zero Discrimination Day highlights how people can become informed about and promote inclusion, compassion, peace and, above all, a movement for change. Zero Discrimination Day is helping to create a global movement of solidarity to end all forms of discrimination.

Could you cycle 320 miles? To put it into perspective, 320 miles is slightly longer than the length of the Grand Canyon (and that’s big!) or FOUR TIMES as long as Hadrian’s Wall. 320 miles is also the distance of the 1936 Jarrow March, which saw unemployed North East residents protest by walking from the South Shield’s town to Westminster, demanding new opportunities for work and a pathway out of the poverty they faced.

The Jarrow March has inspired Stephen Hannah, Head of Year Nine at Jarrow School, to recreate its route in an epic fundraising challenge for Children North East. Drawing a line between the power of a community to challenge poverty seen in 1936, and his experiences of the barriers faced by many young people from low-income families today, he will embark on a cycle ride from London to Jarrow at 4pm, 23rd February. Oh, and did we mention he is doing it all in one go?

In advance of his journey, we spoke to Stephen about what’s motivated him to take this ride of a lifetime…

Cycling 320 miles in one go is an epic adventure to take on! What made you choose this challenge?

I hope to show that with a lot of determination and resilience, you can achieve what you set out to do – just like the crusaders back in 1936. Working at Jarrow School gives me a special connection to the town, and I wanted to do something positive for the local community.

What is the significance of recreating the infamous Jarrow March for the challenge?

The Jarrow March of 1936 was an important historic event which is well remembered in the town. The plight of the crusaders resonates with the local people of Jarrow. During the Depression of the 1930s, many people in Jarrow suffered heavily and there was a high amount of unemployment. The people of Jarrow did not take this lightly, deciding to challenge the government by carrying out this march. Their determination showed the spirit of Jarrow that still exists today. My journey is a mark of respect for those who carried out this march, whilst trying to raise awareness and money for people in the North East who still may be affected by hardships similar to those back in 1936.

We are incredibly grateful you have chosen to fundraise on behalf of Children North East, what made you choose our charity?

Currently, there are 11 in a classroom of 30 are growing up in poverty in our region and Children North East are working very hard to decrease this number. Working with both children and their families, knowing the specific intervention being implemented specifically in our region is just one of the reasons why I chose Children North East. Working in a school I get to see first hand what a small level of intervention can do in supporting our young people.

How have you prepared for the ride?

I have ensured key training sessions have remained consistent in my routine each week, alongside a lot of planning and logistics for the challenge. I am very lucky to have an amazing wife who helps with this routine, without it impacting too much on our young family, as a new Father. This is something that will most definitely help keep my mind strong during the challenge.

Planning both the route and equipment takes a lot of time, especially to get the balance of carrying enough food, water and equipment. The route has also taken a lot of attention as we will be passing a lot of cities and riding at both peak times and through the night.

Although this is the longest challenge I will have done (hoping to do) I have taken on a number of endurance challenges previously, which helps give an understanding of what is required of both body and mind.

How will you keep yourself motivated?

Most people ask how I keep myself motivated and just simply knowing the purpose of the ride and significant impact it could have in raising awareness of Children North East is more than enough. However, I am breaking this challenge down into smaller chunks which will hopefully be more manageable mentally. For example, I have set each 100mile as a target so I gain that sense of achievement throughout, knowing I am a third of the way through each time. During these check point I will be speaking with my family which will help keep me motivated to get home quicker.

What do enjoy about working with young people?

It is difficult to sum up the reasons why I enjoy working with young people, as this could be a very long answer. Ultimately, working each day to ensure our young people are presented with as many options and possibilities in life as possible. One main area I try to focus on each day is being a consistent figure for the young people I work with, helping them gain a positive mindset and morals as they leave school.

In your experience, what challenges do you think young people of today face?

Our young people are some of the most resilient individuals which I have ever met. Continually facing challenges from friends, family and society, there are a lot of young people feeling very overwhelmed looking into their future. Due to a number of different factors, resulting in families facing a lot of poverty and deprevation in our region, our young people are having to grow up far too early. This results in the stress of the family household being picked up by the young people and are missing out on life as a youngster

How can people support you on your challenge?

Helping spread the amazing work of Children North East, and any donations would be amazing. No matter how big or small. Throughout the event we will be giving live updates through Twitter ( @pedalforcause and @childrenNE). A follow and share through these channels would be greatly appreciated. Donations can be made by following the donation link at www.pedalforcause.co.uk.

Children North East are part of a coalition of organisations committed to tackling the effects of poverty and inequality on children and young people urging the Government to ensure a new National Food Strategy ‘levels up’ free school meals for thousands of pupils across the North East.

We have joined forces with the North East Child Poverty Commission (NECPC), Schools North East and Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) to warn Ministers that – despite pledges to level up all parts of the country – the current free school meals system is leaving children in England ‘well behind’ their counterparts in the rest of the UK.

Writing to the Secretaries of State for Education and for the Environment, we have called on the Government to seize the opportunity of a forthcoming Food Strategy White Paper to ‘put the inadequacies of the free school meals system in England right’.

Our joint letter – copied to all North East MPs – highlights the findings of The Cost of Missing Lunchtime: A briefing on free school meals in the North East, which was published last year by NECPC, Children North East and CPAG. This analysis estimated that:

• Over 35,000 – 1 in 4 – school-aged pupils living in poverty in the North East are not eligible for free school meals (FSM) under the current narrow threshold.
• Around 4,000 non-infant schoolchildren in the North East are in families with no recourse to public funds because of their immigration status, many of whom will be living well below the poverty line but are not usually eligible for means-tested FSM.
• 11% of pupils who are eligible for FSM in the North East do not claim this support, often due to the complexity of the process and/or families being unaware of their entitlement. This is resulting in North East schools losing out on £15million in pupil premium funding each year.

In 2013 the Government introduced a temporary measure, making all families in receipt of Universal Credit eligible for free school meals. This was designed to protect families from losing out on entitlements during the initial stages of the roll-out. However, since 1st April 2018 families have had to have an income of less than £7,400 before benefits to be eligible.

Amanda Bailey, NECPC Director, explains: “Whilst our region has the highest proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals, our research makes clear that there are still many thousands of North East children and young people living in poverty who do not qualify for this vital support because the current threshold is simply far too low. ‘It’s not right that they are missing out on support to receive a hot, balanced meal each day with all the many proven benefits of this”.

We are therefore urging the Government to ensure that the new National Food Strategy, expected in the Spring:

• Restores the previous free school meal (FSM) eligibility which included all families in receipt of Universal Credit, and extends it to those equivalent legacy benefits – as the most effective way of ensuring all children and young people experiencing poverty and food insecurity receive this support.
• Makes permanent the current temporary extension of FSM eligibility to some households with no recourse to public funds – many of whom will be living in deep, long-term poverty.
• Introduces automatic registration for FSM – with the Government using the data it already has to identify and automatically enrol families entitled to receive this support, instead of schools and local authorities using valuable time and resources to do so.

Leigh Elliott, Chief Executive at Children North East, say: “At a time when child poverty is rising alongside soaring living costs – and growing numbers of families are struggling to make ends meet – expanding the reach of free school meals would make a massive difference to tens of thousands of pupils in the North East, and many more across the rest of England. ‘This would be a really tangible and effective way of supporting low-income families – the majority of whom are in work – whilst benefiting their children’s health and education”.

Chris Zarraga, Director of Schools North East, adds: “As well as extending the reach of free school meals, the Government must make better use of the data it has to automatically enrol all pupils eligible for this support. At the moment, schools across our region are missing out on millions of pounds of vital pupil premium funding, despite the huge efforts they – and local councils – make to register eligible pupils. A bit of joinedup thinking across Government would avoid this unnecessary use of valuable resources and reap huge benefits for schools and families across the North East”.

Sara Ogilvie, CPAG’s Director of policy, rights and advocacy, also comments: “The Government has committed to level up all parts of the country, but the reality is that children and families in England are being left well behind their counterparts in the rest of the UK with universal free school meals being rolled out in primary schools in Wales and Scotland and a free school meals review underway in Northern Ireland. The current free school meals system in England is clearly inadequate, but the new National Food Strategy provides the Government with a really important opportunity to put this right. They must seize it.”

A copy of the letter:

Notes: 1. A copy of the joint letter from the North East Child Poverty Commission, Children North East, Schools North East and CPAG to the Secretary of State for Education and Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is attached. 2. In May 2021, the North East Child Poverty Commission, Children North East and CPAG jointly published The Cost of Missing Lunchtime: A briefing on free school meals in the North East. They have subsequently worked with Schools North East to share the findings of this work, which was based on October 2020 school census data. 3. In July 2021, Henry Dimbleby published his final recommendations for a National Food Strategy following an independent review undertaken at the Government’s request. The Government has committed to publish a formal response in the form of a White Paper, which is expected in Spring 2022.