Better times than this : youth homelessness in Britain / Tom Hall.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hall, Tom, 1967-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Homeless youth--England--Southerton--Social conditions.

Homeless youth.

Marginality, Social--England--Southerton.

Marginality, Social.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (160 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

London ; Sterling, Va. : Pluto Press, 2003.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

'Tom Hall combines street-level research with academic study to reveal the true scale and nature of the problem of hidden homelessness in contemporary Britain.' Nick Davies, author of Dark Heart: The Shocking Truth about Hidden Britain'Tom Hall writes with deep insight and a spare elegance. In the best realist tradition, he shows us the lives of homeless young people in an entirely fresh way. The reader, having been drawn into the creativity and despair of those lives, is left wondering if their problems are just those of a transitional phase, 'youth', or rather mark them for futures of permanent social exclusion.' Keith Hart, University of AberdeenIf the supposedly disaffected young provide the sub-text to so many of our social anxieties, then the young homeless loom larger here than most: our most vivid reminder of social exclusion, and exemplars too of what the tabloid press like to describe as the feckless, wilful poor.This book explores what life is really like for Britain's young homeless: estranged from their families, out of work and making do on the fringes of social security. The result is a vivid portrait of a pressing social problem. Based on extended fieldwork study - the author spent twelve months in the company of young people moving between hostel accommodation, rented bed-sit tenancies and episodes of rooflessness - Better Times Than This is Britain's first full ethnographic study of youth homelessness.

Contents:

Intro

Contents

1 Introduction

2 At the Hostel

3 In the Bedsits

4 On the Streets

5 Growing Apart?

6 Coming of Age

7 Conclusion

Bibliography

Index

ABC project

20

26

28

35

36

37

38

49

51

75

77

97

98

125

126

133

135

accommodation, see bedsit accommodation

45

48-9

132

bedsit accommodation, 2

bedsit accommodation, 48-75

deposits and rent in advance to secure, 37

deposits and rent in advance to secure, 42

deposits and rent in advance to secure, 49-51

deposits and rent in advance to secure, 55

deposits and rent in advance to secure, 60-3

deposits and rent in advance to secure, 64

deposits and rent in advance to secure, 74

deposits and rent in advance to secure, 108

deposits and rent in advance to secure, 132

evicted from, 19

evicted from, 30

evicted from, 39

evicted from, 42

evicted from, 54

evicted from, 63

evicted from, 64

evicted from, 65

evicted from, 72-5

evicted from, 81

evicted from, 95

evicted from, 97

evicted from, 110

evicted from, 126

getting by in, 112-14

getting by in, 115-16

Lime Street hostel, the adulthood, see youth transitions anthropology, 6

Lime Street hostel, the adulthood, see youth transitions anthropology, 14

Lime Street hostel, the adulthood, see youth transitions anthropology, 117

Lime Street hostel, the adulthood, see youth transitions anthropology, 139

miserable in, 18

miserable in, 53-4

miserable in, 70-2

miserable in, 75

miserable in, 135-6

quality of, 2

quality of, 3

quality of, 48-9

security of tenure in, 3

security of tenure in, 48-9

security of tenure in, 52

security of tenure in, 72

security of tenure in, 132

serial residency in, 8.

serial residency in, 18

serial residency in, 42

serial residency in, 52-5

serial residency in, 75

serial residency in, 76

serial residency in, 100

serial residency in, 105

serial residency in, 131

serial residency in, 142

together in, 63-72

younger tenants and, 130-1

Benefits Agency 30

benefits, social security

amount, and payment of, 30-1

amount, and payment of, 34

amount, and payment of, 60

amount, and payment of, 81

amount, and payment of, 95

attitudesto claiming, 58-9

attitudesto claiming, 102

attitudesto claiming, 112-13

attitudesto claiming, 128

attitudesto claiming, 138

Careers Service 16- and 17-year-olds and

Careers Service 30

Careers Service 56-7

Careers Service 61

Careers Service 121

contributory and means-tested, 29

crisis loans and, 50-1

crisis loans and, 59

crisis loans and, 61

crisis loans and, 64

crisis loans and, 79

crisis loans and, 81

difficulties claiming, 29-30

difficulties claiming, 38

difficulties claiming, 42

difficulties claiming, 56-9

difficulties claiming, 81

difficulties claiming, 82

difficulties claiming, 84

difficulties claiming, 89

difficulties claiming, 104

difficulties claiming, 142

fraud and, 13

fraud and, 51

fraud and, 57

fraud and, 59

fraud and, 62

fraud and, 81

fraud and, 102

fraud and, 103-4

fraud and, 137

housing benefit, 22

housing benefit, 26

housing benefit, 27

housing benefit, 29

housing benefit, 30

housing benefit, 33

housing benefit, 48-51

housing benefit, 55

housing benefit, 60-3

housing benefit, 102

knowledge and understanding of, 57-8

knowledge and understanding of, 82

severe hardship payments, 61

signing on for, 23

signing on for, 29-31.

work and, 59-63

work and, 74

Bourdieu, Pierre 140-1

Careers Service

30

57

58

82

84

113

114

143

training schemes and placements care-leavers, 14

training schemes and placements care-leavers, 20

training schemes and placements care-leavers, 26

training schemes and placements care-leavers, 107

training schemes and placements care-leavers, 130

training schemes and placements care-leavers, 132

Conrad, Joseph 139-40

council housing

3

95

103

crime

21-2

87-92

87-9

104

114-15

136-7

court appearances and, 26

court appearances and, 36

court appearances and, 47

court appearances and, 81

court appearances and, 86

court appearances and, 89

court appearances and, 90-1

court appearances and, 97

court appearances and, 98

court appearances and, 113

court appearances and, 135

court appearances and, 138

drug use arrests and, 64

drug use arrests and, 69

drug use arrests and, 86

drug use arrests and, 88

drug use arrests and, 90

drug use arrests and, 98

drug use arrests and, 135

homelessness and, 91

income from, 89

prison and, 21-2

prison and, 84

prison and, 90

prison and, 91

prison and, 109-10

prison and, 129

slowing down and, 124-5

slowing down and, 127-8

underclass and, 101

violent offences and, 90-2

violent offences and, 98

young women and, 91

youth and, 117

youth and, 131

culture [and subculture]

8

111-16

112-15

133-9

poverty and, 133-9

resistance and, see also resistance

resistance and, 114-15

resistance and, 136-8

resistance clumsiness of, 139

underclass thesis and, 111-12

underclass thesis and, 133-9

Davies, Nick

7-8

139.

Department of Social Security

[DSS] 9

[DSS] 10

[DSS] 30

[DSS] 33

[DSS] 47

[DSS] 49

[DSS] 50-1

[DSS] 56-7

[DSS] 58-9

[DSS] 60

[DSS] 61

[DSS] 62

[DSS] 63

[DSS] 64

[DSS] 79

[DSS] 80

[DSS] 81

[DSS] 84

[DSS] 89

[DSS] 98

[DSS] 102

[DSS] 114

[DSS] 122

[DSS] 138

[DSS] 142

[DSS] 143

drug use

13

15

23

24

41

42

47

55

56

65

66

67-71

68

69

71

81

106

108

110

111

117

amphetamine, 68

amphetamine, 69

at the Lime Street hostel, 26

at the Lime Street hostel, 27

at the Lime Street hostel, 28

cannabis, 59

cannabis, 67

cannabis, 69

cannabis, 74

cannabis, 84

cannabis, 106

counselling for, 41

counselling for, 108

crack cocaine, 68

overdoses as a result of, 136

problems arising from, 19

problems arising from, 67

problems arising from, 68

problems arising from, 74-5

problems arising from, 91

problems arising from, 132

rehabilitation centres and, 45

heroin 68

education

4

21

college, 36

college, 122

college, 126

college, 133

literacy and, 38

literacy and, 119

qualifications from, 3

qualifications from, 21

qualifications from, 59

qualifications from, 103

qualifications from, 108

qualifications from, 109

qualifications from, 113

qualifications from, 136

school, 21

school, 32

school, 42

school, 56

school, 88

school, 89

school, 101

school, 136

ethics, fieldwork 12-14

ethnography

6

9-12

arguments with, 15

arguments with, 18

arguments with, 19-20

arguments with, 21

arguments with, 28

arguments with, 37

arguments with, 64

arguments with, 78.

arguments with, 86-7

arguments with, 135

returning to stay with, 31

returning to stay with, 38

returning to stay with, 45-6

returning to stay with, 54

returning to stay with, 64

returning to stay with, 77

returning to stay with, 108

support from, 50

support from, 61

support from, 103

support from, 108

support from, 126

fieldnotes 12

fieldwork and

9

13-14

at the hostel, 34-5

at the hostel, 46

in low places, 122

outdoors with, 80-5

staying with, 3

staying with, 15

staying with, 19

staying with, 26

staying with, 28

staying with, 37

staying with, 38

staying with, 50-1

staying with, 54

staying with, 75

staying with, 76

staying with, 78

staying with, 80

staying with, 89

staying with, 135

staying with, 141

the negative influence of, 107-11

the negative influence of, 132

the negative influence of, 134

the support of, 90

the support of, 114

the support of, 115

the support of, 123

friends [and friendship]

34-5

63-6

80-5

142

drugs and, 71

drugs and, 74

falling out with, 65

falling out with, 66

in the bedsits, 63-6

gossip and tall stories

16

66-7

89-93

Hannerz, Ulf 10-11

homelessness, youth

and the hidden homeless, 2-3

choice and constraint and, 101-5

definitions of, 3

definitions of, 79-80

episodic nature of, 8

episodic nature of, 75

lifestyle reasons for rise in, 3-4

researching, 9-14

size of, 2-3

streets, the adapting to, 105-7

survivalism and, 114

the transition to adulthood and, see also youth

the transition to adulthood and, 117-24

transitions the underclass and, see also underclass

transitions the underclass and, the

transitions the underclass and, 5.

transitions the underclass and, 101.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781849640886

1849640882

9780585488998

0585488991

OCLC:

53981916