1 March 2019
Researchers:
Syeda Hussain (Adfam Family Support Coordinator), Tamika Carter (sessional Youth Worker), Bo Chapman and Zoe Flynn (Salmagundi films).
- Many young people shared their experiences naturally when a ‘label’ was not mentioned. This may be due to young people feeling ‘desensitised’, and substance misuse being ‘the norm’ in the area due to high gang and knife crimes in the borough. Others perhaps out of loyalty for their parents. Once the label ‘substance misuse’ was removed, young people engaged well.
- Some young people were not able to commit for different reasons, which included: having to return home at a certain time, change of venue, or preferred other activities (e.g. football, going to the park).
- Prior to starting the session having a warm meal around the table and engaging in general conversation made young people feel safe and comfortable.
- The young people who committed to the project enjoyed the creativity and learning new skills. After the project ended, young people have stated they will continue to write poetry to express themselves, and will explore other creative platforms such as music and drama. Young people were provided notebooks with a positive quote imprinted on the front to encourage them to continue writing
