Young people and volunteers from across Aberdeen are hopeful their voices will inspire change after sharing their experiences with councillors.
Councillors from the anti-poverty and inequality committee attended an event at community media charity Shmu this afternoon to hear about what they can do to make a difference.
The event kicked off with a showing of the four films that premiered at the start of Challenge Poverty Week last month.
Young people and volunteers were able to speak to members of the committee about the real issues in the city – and what more could be done to alleviate the problem.
Issues like struggling to find help, stigma, and barriers to employment were all discussed following the film showing.
Tanya Gibson, one of the young adults featured in Shmu’s film, was invited to share her thoughts on poverty.
With her mum receiving disability benefits and her dad acting as her registered carer, Ms Gibson said they were having to make tough choices.
The 23-year-old said: “It’s sometimes hard to realise you can still be suffering from poverty when you have a roof over your head.”
She has been involved in Shmu Train, an employability course, after finishing college and explained some people experience a barrier because of where they live – with some even choosing not to put their address on CVs for fear of judgement.
Tim Brown, a volunteer at Shmu and Seaton Community Hub, explained they are busy working with the area to create something “really special” and said they are “trying to change that stigma”.
He believes the committee needs to be holistic and said there was a lot of work to do to improve things for people across the city.
Mr Brown described the moment a four-year-old girl got excited when visiting the community pantry because she realised she was getting supper that night.
Hopes committee will make difference
Ms Gibson is hopeful the committee will be able to make a difference and shared her voice to help.
She said: “The more people that know, the more chances you have of getting something out of it.
“Even if you tell everyone about the situation it will eventually get to the right person that can do something about it.”
Meanwhile, Ronan Henderson, who has also been through the Shmu employability training, said he hopes the event was “humbling” for the committee.
The 22-year-old added: “If they’ve watched those films and they don’t do anything about it, then that’s a bit of a failure on their part.”
Both said their experiences with Shmu has helped them gain confidence and skills needed while looking for employment – breaking down the barriers they were faced with.
Creating lasting change in communities
Councillor Christian Allard, convener of the committee, said he was so taken by the film premier at the Belmont Filmhouse he wanted other members to see it.
Councillor Allard said it was interesting to hear from the young people and volunteers, and giving them the chance to say what they truly wanted to.
He said: “I wanted to make sure we all had an experience of what people living in poverty, a direct experience not only from the films but from the people telling us how it feels living in poverty.
“You can see they were very passionate about what should be done, not just their own experience but what should be done.”
Murray Dawson, chief executive of Shmu, felt it was significant the committee met at the charity, which aims to empower people in the regeneration areas through media skills training and employability strands.
He said: “This is a significant moment, and hopefully the committee will come together and listen to the voices of those underrepresented to create lasting change in our communities.
“We hope we can see fruitful outcomes in the coming weeks, months and years to tackle and challenge poverty and the escalated cost of living crisis we are experiencing.”
Conversation