Bedlington students add voices to campaign

The Year 10 pupils from St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy were interviewed and recorded for the Clean Start in Life project, which was funded by the charity In Kind Direct, working in partnership with Children North East.

Sharing toothbrushes, wearing dirty school uniform, and avoiding sport and socialising were just some of the issues identified in the report, which looked into the experience of the 1.1 million children in the UK who are living in hygiene poverty.

“Children North East approached St Benet Biscop to ask if we would be interested in supporting the project,” explained Marcia Watts, Student Support Manager at the school, which is part of the Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust.

“In Kind Direct spoke to 100 children and young people in England aged five to 18. We chose five Year 10 students from St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy to represent our school, who contributed to the report,” she continued.

“Our students were spoken to in engagement sessions held by Karissa Williams from Children North East and asked to talk about their experiences of hygiene poverty. They also looked at finances and budgeting for shopping and how this could affect families.

“Their views formed part of a report which has been produced and was raised in the House of Commons.”

The parliamentary reception to launch the research was chaired by Helen Hayes MP, with St Benet Biscop’s local Member of Parliament, Ian Lavery, among those attending.

Based on the interviews, along with a survey of 1,000 six- to 15-year-olds across Britain, and discussions with community organisations, the report found that that 1.1 million children and young people have gone without a hygiene product, such as shower gel, shampoo, or toothpaste, because their families cannot afford them, with one in five going without every month, and one in ten never having some of the hygiene products that they need.

Ten per cent had missed school for a reason related to hygiene, including not having a clean uniform or PE kit, not having period products, or not being able to brush their teeth; and almost one in ten children experiencing hygiene poverty didn’t play outside or participate in sports because they couldn’t wash themselves or their clothing if they got dirty.

The St Benet Biscop students featured in the video spoke about their involvement in the research, their views on hygiene poverty and its impact on children and young people, and how they thought the Government, charities, and schools could help.

“The recordings were aired in the House of Commons to ensure that young people’s voices are represented in order to support the report findings,” added Mrs Watts.

“Bringing together Parliamentarians, civil servants, young people, charitable organisations, and corporate partners, the event explored the findings of the research at a critical moment ahead of the launch of the Government’s child poverty strategy.”