NARRATOR:'In the midst of an economic recession, we're all in it together but some are in it deeper than others.
NARRATOR:'With one in five young people struggling to find work and many dependent on benefits, Britain's youth is being hit hard.'
NARRATOR:'In London, 19 year old Frankie's home is a cramped, three bed, council flat.'
FRANKIE:It's a lively day.
NARRATOR:'Where five people are dependent on his mum's benefits.'
FRANKIE:Two of my sisters sleep in this room here, My other sisters sleep in that room there and my mum sleeps in that room there. And obviously this is my room, there.
INTERVIEWER:Where's the front room?
FRANKIE:There's not a front room.
NARRATOR:'Frankie has just finished his first year at college, where he is studying games design.'
FRANKIE:This project is just dream home. That'll be on the beach. With the swimming pool on the roof, you know?
FRANKIE:This ain't my dream home. My dream is always just being independent, having my own house, being happy somewhere and location wise it would probably still be in the hood.
NARRATOR:'Frankie's hope is to be the very first person from his family to get to university.'
FRANKIE:One day I kinda said to myself like, I have to change, you know, it's like nobody ain't gonna change for me. I do need that determination, you know, and that focus because without that then how am I gonna get where I wanna be?
NARRATOR:'But with fees now hitting £9000 a year and no access to the bank of mum and dad, the odds are stacked against him.'
FRANKIE:'Education is the way out, you know. Rich people don't need to really care about education because it's given to them on a plate, whereas people like me or whoever else is in my state you're born into nothing so you have to make something of yourself.'
FRANKIE:'The streets is a safety net. The streets is always there for you, there's always opportunity within the streets to, you know, make money but it's easy, it's like the easy route out,
FRANKIE:whereas going to get a job and that, that's kinda the hard route and you need that determination and ambition to get you there. And if you're from a state like this and you go apply for a job they get knocked back down then they kinda lose that determination after they try
FRANKIE:so then they come back to the streets and the streets provide so that's why you can't blame people for coming back to the streets.
NARRATOR:'But Frankie knows from experience what the price of the streets can be.
NARRATOR:'Every few weeks, he makes a two hour journey across London and gets a stark reminder.'
FRANKIE:'When I visit my friends, I know what they're thinking that's why it's good to be the person on the other side of the table cause I know what goes through their heads.'
FRANKIE:Before when I was here, I was sitting on the other side of the visiting table, I was the person being visited.
NARRATOR:'Frankie was sentenced to two years in prison, for a street robbery of a mobile phone that ended in violence.'
FRANKIE:I hit one of the boys and he suffered a fractured jaw so–
FRANKIE:So I was in prison for something, you know, I wasn't in prison for no reason no one's in prison for no reason.
FRANKIE:You know, bed, toilet, sink…
FRANKIE:Amazing view.
FRANKIE:I was thinking about it just now, when I was in here, what did I do to kill time like, it'd be nice to just… think all the time. That's when I kinda come up with a plan you know, kinda, try and structure my life.
FRANKIE:I've woken up and realised… what, you know, what my life is like and, you know, what everyone else's life is like and…
FRANKIE:I kinda had to think, you know, "how can I better this?" and it gave me that time to think, you know, what I want to do with my life, you know.
NARRATOR:'Frankie's college is about to break up for the summer and he's already planning on how to fund himself through the holidays.'
FRANKIE:Well obviously once I finish my course, getting a job will be vital like, I'll have to get a job. I got work experience with BT, conservation work, horticultural work experience. All of them are voluntary.
NARRATOR:'He's already built up a great CV through working for free but getting a paid job is trickier. He has to disclose his criminal conviction.'
FRANKIE:Applying online for jobs ain't really working so I'm kinda gonna get proactive and go down to Wood Green go to the stores directly.
FRANKIE:I'm looking for a retail job in the area of games because I know a lot about the product.
FRANKIE:Can I speak to the manager please?
MANAGER:Yeah, you're speaking to her.
FRANKIE:Would it be possible to apply for a job?
MANAGER:Yes, you wanna give me your CV. And I can keep your email address for our HR, we'll forward it to them. It's easier. OK?
FRANKIE:OK, thank you very much.
MANAGER:Thank you very much. Have a lovely day.
FRANKIE:You too.
NARRATOR:'Frankie's CV didn't get him any offers but he may have another chance.'
NARRATOR:'Out of the blue, a voluntary work contact has recommended him for an interview in the west end.'
FRANKIE:'I don't go into central London because, you know, there's never really been any reason for me to go there. I know Trafalgar Square and that's it.
FRANKIE:'It's not exactly a poor city, you know. There's loads of businesses and that so it's not like I'm in the middle of nowhere.
FRANKIE:'As much as there is going on there's a lot of competition you know, the odds are stacked against you really.'
NARRATOR:'Frankie has never been to a nightclub before but he might have some of the right skills. It's street work, handing out flyers.'
FRANKIE:It's really important for me to get to that interview stage when it comes to getting a job because I have a criminal record. See, I almost feel like I'm blacklisted.
FRANKIE:Like, I feel like, I can't get jobs because of what I've done when I was a kid. You know, obviously I regret it. Every day I regret it but there's nothing I can do, I can't turn back time.
PHONE VIBRATING
FRANKIE:Hello?
NARRATOR:'Hi there, how are you Frankie?'
FRANKIE:Oh yeah I'm fine thank you, how are you?
FRANKIE:Alright then, thank you. Alright, bye.
FRANKIE:Yeah I got the job, I told you man.
FRANKIE:Beat 16 people to the job. Can we go Nandos to celebrate?
THEY LAUGH
NARRATOR:'Frankie's travelled down from London to the south coast. He's come down for an open day to check out a degree course in games design.'
LECTURER:All these guys already have their degrees, and their doing a masters here.
LECTURER:All the courses we do are both academically challenging so they're difficult courses but at the same time they prepare you for work.
FRANKIE:What's the possibility of me earning money or part-time work while I'm here?
LECTURER:It's probably going to be difficult because unlike other colleges we have a very full timetable.
STUDENT LOAN INFORMER:So what we're gonna try and do is give you a bit of an insight into student finance.
STUDENT LOAN INFORMER:How much could you supplement your income through student finance and support with a part-time job. There is no need to panic.
STUDENT LOAN INFORMER:Yes, the cost that you may pay may be more than people on the current system and I'm not going to deny that, that is the reality of the situation.
STUDENT LOAN INFORMER:You will have more of a loan than I have but the repayment system that you get, is technically better.
FRANKIE:It will be a three year course so that would be 27 grand that I'll be in debt.
INTERVIEWER:What?!
FRANKIE:Twenty se-- but that's not even including living finance or nothing like that, that's just 27 grand just to do my course, So obviously there'll be other costs on top of that as well so, it'll be a lot of money.
NARRATOR:'The day has given Frankie plenty to think about.'
FRANKIE:It was a good eye-opener but all it highlighted really is how expensive it's gonna be. But university ain't really an option it’s a vital, like, I have to do it.
FRANKIE:'You know, I wanna be able to be that person where I can-- you know, I work, I buy houses, you know, buy cars, you know. I wanna be able to, you know just live a comfortable lifestyle like. I wanna be able to not be the same as everyone else.'
Due to the sensitive nature of the subject matter, teacher viewing is recommended before watching with your students.
Frankie is 19 and living in an overcrowded flat in London with his family who are dependent on benefits.
He describes the appeal of life on the streets and how he ended up in a young offenders institution for robbery.
Frankie is now determined to turn his life around and go to university and he describes his aspirations.
We see Frankie facing many hurdles, including finding a job with a criminal record, funding study and his fear of student debt.
Frankie reflects on a need for extra determination to improve one's chances at life when you come from a background like his.
This clip is from the series Growing Up Poor.
Teacher Notes
Use the clip as a stimulus for discussion on the reasons why Frankie became involved in crime.
Discuss the barriers Frankie faces to improving his life. Compare Frankie's life with a teenager from a wealthy background.
The clip is also useful for discussing ideas such as equality of opportunity and meritocracy.
Curriculum Notes
This clip will be relevant for teaching PSHE/Modern Studies at GCSE Level. This topic appears in OCR, Edexcel, AQA, WJEC KS4/GCSE in England and Wales, CCEA GCSE in Northern Ireland and SQA National 4/5 in Scotland.
More from Growing Up Poor:
Teenage pregnancy and poverty - Amber's story. video
This clip explores teenage pregnancy whilst living in poverty. 16 year-old Amber is pregnant, without a partner and on benefits. Amber reflects on the circumstances that led to her current situation.
Teenage poverty in the UK - Shelby's story. video
This clip explores teenage poverty and unemployment. We see 17 year-old Shelby describing how she tries to budget but often runs out of money and is constantly hungry.
Teenage poverty in the UK and being an unemployed teenage dad - Wesley's story. video
Wes is 19, unemployed and living with his mum with whom he has a difficult relationship. Wes wants to move on, leave home and find a job as he has a one year old son to support.
