A COMMUNITY group has launched a campaign to help find solutions for people living in poverty.

Thrive, an organisation based in Stockton has been working with community groups in Leeds and London to build links with those who have direct experience of living in poverty.

The three groups have been working together to come up with solutions to some of the biggest issues that currently lock people in poverty across the UK.

They hope to use their experience to change national and local policies which they claim are failing to provide adequate support and sometimes even pushing people further into poverty.

Tracey Herrington, project manager at Thrive said:“This is not just about having a voice, it’s about finding a way to use our voice that will hold politicians to account for the very real impact that their decisions have on millions of people’s lives.

“This animation is a really amazing project, with people taking ownership and bringing together images to create something that explains their journey to other people.

"It has been inspirational watching people develop and flourish, seeing those involved in the project grow in confidence and become more vocal. We hope it will encourage other groups to become more active.”

Sarah Louise Lennon, member of Thrive said: “We want people to know why poverty exists. To question why jobs aren't as secure as they should be, why homes aren't worth living in and why parents cannot afford to feed their children or even to pay for childcare.

“We all felt that sharing our lived experiences of these circumstances was the most effective way to do this.”

The groups have also used their own experiences to identify solutions to poverty which are tied to the provision of decent housing, good jobs that pay living wage and restoring funding for community projects.

Dr Ruth Patrick from the University of York who facilitated the project, said: “If we are ever to effectively tackle poverty in today’s Britain, we need to do much more to really listen to and engage with the expertise that comes from direct experience of poverty, hardship and - all too often - destitution.

"Only then, can we start to understand what will really make a difference."

To find out more about the campaign, visit www.poverty2security.org.