The Fox Report: From the North East

Authors: Judy Kirby, Sam Gilchrist and Faith Goodfellow

Being poor - it's your own fault!

The Fox Report from the North East provides powerful insight into how 'austerity' is being experienced by people in the North East. Key themes include:

• Food poverty - 913,138 people received a minimum of three days emergency food from its food banks in 2013-14 up from 26,000 in 2008-09
• Homelessness - Since 2012 homelessness has sharply increased in the North East
• Sanctions - In the North East 12,000 jobseekers are sanctioned every month

The report explores the huge gap between the reality of poverty and a mean-spirited welfare system, and the significant public confusion that exists which has led to public support for growing social injustice. However, there are encouraging signs that people may be beginning to wake up to the seriousness of the problem and to question some of the misinformation they have been fed by the media and politicians.

The Fox Report is the investigative arm of the Friend. It is funded by the Joseph Rowntree Chritable Trust and co-edited by Judy Kirby and Ian Kirk-Smith.

The publisher is The Friend Publications Limited.

The Fox Report: From the North East [in the Friend, 25 April 2014] © The Friend Publications Limited 2014.

All Rights Reserved. No part of this paper may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher except for the quotation of brief passages in reviews.