Podcasts: stories from practitioners and local people

In this section you can listen directly to stories from practitioners that are working to address poverty related issues in their communities. Make sure you have speakers or handphones handy, and just select a case study to hear the story from practitioners and local people that live and work in some of the UK's most disadvantaged neighbourhoods.

Development trusts are based in some of the most deprived areas of the UK, and have made it their mission to tackle poverty and disadvantage. They are owned and led by people living and working in their own community, and they use enterprise to create, circulate and anchor wealth in their area. If we are serious about eradicating poverty, we need to support community-led organisations that are enterprising and solution-oriented, motivated not by the quick fix, but by the long-term prosperity of the whole community.

We invite you to listen to their stories, and we hope you will find them inspiring and of practical use.

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Select an item below to listen to the recording:

Acumen Community Enterprise Development Trust (mp3): In 2004, Easington (East coast of County Durham) was the seventh most deprived district in the whole of the UK. Many families in the area suffered from poor health and unemployment, drug issues, and severe housing problems. Kate Welch (founder and Chief Executive) tells us how the Trust has tried to turn this around by using enterprise.

Jobs Education & Training (mp3): Jobs Education and Training (JET) was created by local people in Derby to help young Muslims in the Normanton area to access training and employment. Mohammed Sharief, life long resident of Normanton and Executive Director of JET, talks about about encouraging positive role models from the local community.

Cresco Trust (mp3): Margaret Lee (Chief Executive) tells how Cresco Trust is using enterprise and peacebuilding to move local peolpe into quality employment: “everything that we do whether it is quilting or ice-cream is about people and jobs … but Cresco’s real strength is in its partnerships.”

Inverclyde Community Development Trust (mp3): Inverclyde Community Development Trust was created in the 1980s as part of an anti-poverty strategy for an area 25 miles West of Glasgow suffering from rising unemployment. The trust is now the largest voluntary sector employer in the area and works to remove any barrier which local people may have in finding employment.

Kiveton Park & Wales Community Development Trust (mp3): Kiveton Park & Wales Community Development Trust (KPWCDT) was set up in 1997 in response to the closure, and to breathe new life into the community. Its mission ever since has been to improve the lives of people in the community and Steph Hryschko, Chair of KPWCDT, explains how in 2006 they decided to go online to help boost the local community.

Bradford Trident (mp3): When Bradford Trident was first set up in 2000, the area was the second most deprived ward in England, but after seven years of community led action, local people have seen huge benefits. Steve Hartley is chief Executive of Bradford Trident and he tells us about these benefits.

Halifax Opportunities Trust (mp3): Halifax Opportunities Trust is a development trust that was set up in 2002 as a successor to a £14m Single Regeneration Budget programme in West Central Halifax, West Yorkshire. They have used their SureStart programme to engage with local families and provide better access to key services.

Shoreditch Trust (mp3): The Shoreditch Trust is responsible for the NDC process in Shoreditch. Amogst other things, they have developed a programme to encourage local residents to make the most of cultural events, the arts and theatre in the capital

East End Fair Finance (mp3): East End Fair Finance offers a range of financial services designed specifically for people who have been excluded or exploited by the financial system. These include lending products that are affordable, like personal finance, business finance, micro-finance as well as free money and debt advice for people who are over indebted.