Jennie's video transcript
Jennies Story
Jennie walks through town
Jennie speaks- 'My dad split up from my mum when I was Six, the minute my step dad got involved, it did cause a lot of problems for my dad. It tore the family apart. I was coming up to Eleven and he was trying to be like my dad, trying to boss me around and everything and I weren’t having none of it. At first he were sound, you know like and would slip us a fiver now and then and said don’t tell your mum. After a while he started kicking off and telling my mum to choose between me and him. So I got into more trouble. The more trouble I got into the worse I got. I remember it kicked off one day, I turned round to my brothers and sisters and I said right you have got a choice, you can come with me or you can stay here and get battered, so I went stuff you lot then, I’m off and snuck out back door'.
Neglect, abuse and isolation can sometimes make home so unbearable that the only solution is to run away.
The Children’s Society works along side front- line partners to meet children and young people at their point of greatest need, providing local solutions for local need.
Jennie travelling in a car
'First night I ran away, I went missing for about 5 hours, after that it would go in like days and weeks. I mean at one point, I went missing for two and a half weeks. The only reason I got reported missing was because I hadn’t been to school and a lot of people knew where I was and stuff but the people that knew what was going on didn’t bother telling anybody cause they knew I would be a lot safer there than at home. I’d been running away for quite some years and then before I got put in care'.
Jennie at home
When I first went into care, I did find it a bit hard and everything, you know trusting people. I couldn’t do it me, I were like freaking out, I didn’t know know body, didn’t have a clue where I was. The staff didn’t do nothing about other residents ganging up on each other, you know. They ganged up on me pretty bad.
Jennie plays piano
'The pressure got too bad and so I thought stuff this, I am legging it'.
Jennie starts walking outside again
Each year in the UK, 100,000 children run away from home and many are so desperate they resort to begging, stealing or prostitution to survive.
The Children’s Society work with runaway children at risk on the street is key to our mission.
We provide real solutions for children and young people and are committed to achieving tangible results for our professional partners.
Jennie in multi-storey car park
'The multi-story car park where I used to go and chill and sometimes I’d like to jump off and stuff. It were like, it started off somewhere where not many people could get us and I got it into my head that everyone was scared of heights and nobody could touch me, nobody could hurt me when I were up there. And one day, I did end up jumping off it and I did damage my leg. Luckily I didn’t break nothing'.
The Children’s Society Lancashire Children’s Rights project, supported Jennie for over Four years. The project listens to children and gives them the confidence and skills they need to get off the streets and into positive independent lives.
Jennie outside the project
'If Lancashire service rights wasn’t here, I tell you man I think I would have fallen to pieces along time ago. They have encouraged me to like do positive things, you know they have set me on the right paths for my career. My future is going to be wicked cause the children’s rights have got me off to a right good start and have sent me to auditions and stuff for my acting and now I have got my ambitions to be a movie star. I am going to do really wall me, I’m going to be stubborn, I’m going to do it'.