Our Work
DURING a routine play therapy session, charity director Tricia Hughes is pretending to refuse to eat her breakfast. Suddenly her head is forced down on the plate and she's told "Just f*****g eat it" by her five-year-old playmate. But Tricia, a child psychotherapist, doesn't bat an eyelid.
This youngster's aggressive behaviour is typical of the challenging children she works with on a daily basis in the east end of Glasgow, where her charity With Kids is based. As the co-founder of the Big Issue in Scotland, Tricia is all too familiar with the east end's poverty, drug problems, alcoholism, homelessness, child abuse and the impact each has on its children.
The director of With Kids, a Big Issue Foundation charity, said: "We have got children who have been born to parents with drug additions, so from day one their life is unpredictable and chaotic.
"The mother's priority is to get her next heroin fix, so the child comes second. Their house will have sparse furniture and poor food.
"Social work intervene, the child is taken into care, the mum goes into rehab to get off the drugs, the baby (who is a toddler by then) goes back to her but it's not working."
During weekly one-to-one, 50-minute sessions, it's Tricia's job to identify a child's problems through play. She has encountered many situations of concern that immediately signal to her that families are struggling to cope and need help, like the orphan who buried his toys in the sandpit or the neglected youngster who pretended he was an animal. She explained: "One child's father was killed in a violent incident and his mother died through drug addiction about a year later. He lived with his gran and became very close to another male relative who committed suicide.
"This wee boy is running around school shouting and screaming. He is living with complete unpredictability.
"Everybody he has loved has died and the one other person is his granny who is not in good health. It's no wonder he's playing up at school.
"We go in, look at what we can provide his granny and try to introduce stability and routine in his life."
Tricia said: "The east end is a vibrant and lively community where lots of families are managing fine.
"Then there are families who are struggling with difficulties like poverty and mental health problems.
"There are a significant number who are struggling, unsupported, with extreme difficulties that we shouldn't have in the 21st century.
"All neuroscience says templates for adult relationships are set in the first few years of life. You can compensate for them later in life, but wouldn't it be good if we got it right in the first place?"
With Kids is based on a preventative approach involving early intervention, working with children and families, using a range of evidence-based strategies. Because With Kids is independent and isn't affiliated to but works closely with social services, parents are more likely to self-refer.
The charity provides financial, practical and emotional support to kids aged three to 11 and their families.
Such as the mum with two children under two who was given a pushchair, the family with five children who never had a Christmas tree, the single dad who needed bedding and flooring for his home, and countless young people who wouldn't have a Christmas present if it wasn't for the charity.
Tricia added: "It never ceases to amaze me with how profoundly children engage with their difficulties and find ways to make sense of them. They are very resilient."
Now in its third year, after a successful two-year pilot, With Kids is able to reach out to even more people thanks to a grant from the Big Lottery Fund to the tune of £660,000 over three years. And it's also touched the hearts of the east-end's rich and famous sons and daughters. Film star Robert Carlyle, New York celebrity photographer David Eustace, actress Kathleen McDermott, artist Jim Lambie and entertainment tycoon James Mortimer have all been impressed with the With Kids ethos and lent their support by becoming ambassadors for the charity.
On www.withkids.org.uk you can see Robert Carlyle, who was raised by his father in the east end, explain why he had thrown his weight behind the charity.
He said: "These kids needs help and a bit of support. We all need it in our lives, no matter what social circumstance we come from.
"A lot of movies I have made deal with people at the a**e end of the social ladder. With Kids gives children the opportunity to gain confidence in life.
"Whether you are interested in being an actor, a plumber, a brickie or a football player, you've got to set out to be the best you can be at any one of those things."
Tricia added: "Because our ambassadors have talked about their childhoods and that it wasn't always great, it has allowed people to talk about that and think 'Gosh, look what they did'.
"It's opened up a dialogue."
From flat broke to high heels
When she moved back to Scotland after eight years abroad, single mum Sharon Porter and her daughter Shasa had nothing but the clothes they stood up in.But their lives were turned around after they were referred to With Kids. Low in confidence, Sharon, 27, never imagined it would lead her to modelling on a catwalk. But she and Shasa starred in the With Kids Fashion Show on Thursday at the Hilton Glasgow. The community development student, who returned to Glasgow from Spain in 2009, said: "I'd had my own house abroad so coming back was a total culture shock.
"I cannot praise them enough." "When I got a flat in Dennistoun, With Kids gave me a bed for Shasa, and Tina from the charity gave me her old microwave.
"Christmas was a struggle. I only had a few things for Shasa but With Kids gave me a main present of a big doll, food and invited us to the Christmas party.
"Since then, I have grown in confidence and so has Shasa. She modelled on the catwalk and looked like she was meant to be there."
"With Kids is a lifeline. It is great to be able to speak to other parents. You are never looked down on and there's a real sense of community.
Cool Cause
With Kids, which has annual running costs of £300,000, relies on grants and donations. One of its main fundraisers - the Fashion Show and Midsummer Ball - took place on Thursday in the Hilton Glasgow when 20 young people who have benefited from the charity made their modelling debut. The £75-a-head event was hosted by actress Kathleen McDermott and interior designer John Amabile. For more information about the charity, or to make a donation, visit www.withkids.org.uk
