What are Splott’s young people doing to fight against poverty?
Two men in their early twenties sit in the café eating lunch. In between mouthfuls they talk animatedly, smiling and joking with one another. Whilst their behaviour may resemble that of many young people across Wales, it is hard to believe that their lives are not as carefree as their behaviour would suggest. These young men are in fact homeless, and they are eating a discounted meal at the Huggard Centre for the homeless.
The 2015 Cardiff Liveable City Report stated that Cardiff was voted the number one UK city for young people to live in. But scratch a little beneath the surface, and it is evident that there is a huge divide of wealth in the city, with Splott being officially named the ninth most deprived constituency in Wales.
How does poverty affect the lives of young people living in Splott, and what is being done to combat it?
It is evident that unemployment is a key issue for young people in Splott. 21-year-old Splott resident Alex Jones is currently struggling to find work.
“Me and most of my mates are unemployed. I work in construction, but there’s not many jobs around, and those that are around are very short term,” he sighs.
It appears that Alex is right. October 2015 statistics from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal that 21% of the people claiming Job Seeker’s Allowance (JSA) in Splott were between the ages of 16-24.
Compare this to Butetown, where just 17% of JSA claimants are aged from 16 to 24, and it really illustrates the issue of youth unemployment in Splott.
Laura Butler is the Youth Employment Mentor at STAR, a charity that helps young people who face unemployment and homelessness in the Cardiff South Cluster (Splott, Tremorfa, Adamsdown and Roath). She attributes high unemployment rates in Splott to a lack of qualifications and unreliable zero hour contracts.“I think that unemployment is a cycle that’s hard to break out of. A lot of their friends are unemployed, so there’s a lack of aspiration and motivation among some young people in Splott,” Laura also explains.
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Living on the streets
For many young people, unemployment is not the only issue that they have to contend with. Some young people are finding it impossible to move out of their family homes due to their low wages making it impossible for them to afford even the reasonably priced rents that can be found in Cardiff.
According to the ONS, 3.3 million 20-to 34-year-olds lived with their parents in 2013, the highest number since it started keeping records in 1996.
This is a key issue for Splott resident Hannah Kane-Roberts. Having graduated from the Cardiff Metropolitan University two years ago, she is desperately searching for a job that is relevant to her Sports Science degree. After claiming JSA for approximately a year, she has recently taken part time work as a swimming instructor as a last resort.
“I’m 23, and I can’t see myself moving out of my parent’s house for at least another five years. At my current rate of pay I won’t ever be able to afford my own place,” Hannah says.
Other young people in Splott don’t have the luxury of remaining in their family homes. Many face the monthly struggle of gathering enough money to pay their rent, and a lot of young people even face homelessness due to their inability to afford to accommodation.
Richard Laydon is the chief executive of the Huggard Centre, a hostel and day centre for the homeless. He claims that age of their clientele has been declining over the past 10 to 15 years, hinting that increasing numbers of young people have been finding themselves homeless.
He also believes that there is a changing nature of homelessness. “There’s a dramatic shift in the lack of availability of long term and reasonably paid work, and this is an issue if you don’t have the financial resources to support yourself.
“The benefits system has changed, which means people under 25 get a lot less benefit, so it’s harder for them to find that foothold and start building their life from there,” Richard discloses.
Help is at hand
Luckily for the young people of Splott, there have been various schemes put in place to help keep them on track. The most significant of these is the STAR programme.
As the leader of the Youth Employment Mentoring Project, Laura Butler works one to one with young people aged 16 to 24, helping people search and apply for jobs. STAR also run free training courses and will fund people to achieve their dream job on a case-by-case basis. “At the moment I’m trying to get funding for this lad to get his forklift licence and work boots so he can start a job,” Laura says.
The Huggard Centre is a space for the young and homeless to seek help. Richard Laydon says, “We have a hostel that houses up to 22 people at a time, and we have 14 houses around that community that house up to 50 people, including a couple in Splott.”
Many services are available to help young people at the Huggard Centre. These include the provision of meals, a laundry service and showers, as well as access to specialist services to help with alcohol and drug abuse, benefits and employment and training.
With the last mouthful eaten, the young men’s meal at the Huggard Centre is complete. However, that is not the end of young people’s fight against the bad hand that they have been dealt and their desire to improve their lives.
words LOUISE HEATH, photos JON CANDY