Social

Action
Research
booklet
Contents
Task 1: Brainstorm on social issues
Task 2: Research on other action videos
Task 3: Research on own video
Task 4: contact details and angle for own
production

Task 1:
(this should have been done in the idea process you now need to write it down
for example you looked into an issue and didnt like it, or your realized it was too
difficult these ideas need to be noted now)
 Your brainstorms should cover:
The issue
The effect the issue has on community
How easy it would be to cover the social issue
What has been done to cover this issue before
Rough idea on who you can interview

Idea 1:

To begin with, Oskar and I wanted to do a social action video based around single
parenting around the local area, and how difficult it is to raise a child alone. It has
a massive effect on the community to bring everyone together and single parents
would have many supporters. Most cases, the extended family members will play
a big part on the childs life. If the parent doesnt have extended family the
community may include support groups, synagogues and churches to help and
build the mother or father to be ready to take care of a child. It would be difficult
to find parents who are willing to talk about their weaknesses and about such a
strong subject that has changed their lives. Finding people who are willing to be
interviewed would be difficult and finding children who are also willing to speak
about their situation would be difficult too. I havent seen any social action videos
as of yet about this subject, and it doesnt seem to be spoken about as much as it
should of based on the emotional difficultly it has on people around us. A rough
idea on who to interview would be a local charities that set up support meetings,
asking them what they do and how they help the parents, and also finding willing
families who would speak to us about the effects it has.

Idea 2:
Our second idea was for the youth social action fund for Berkshire. This is to raise
money for young people ages between 10 and 25. It is to create enjoyable
opportunities and skills developed for young people, benefiting them and the
places they live. This would be difficult to cover as we would have to find the
person managing the company and people who put money into the charity. They
have made videos and set up places in the local area to bring people together and
create a community. We could interview people that has been helped by this
fundraiser, and people who work for them

Idea 3:

Our third and final idea is working with SHOC on homelessness around slough.
This is a huge issue around the location, and SHOC offer support for the people to
make the right choices and change their lifestyle. It brings the community
together and builds relationships between the community and the homeless. It
would be easy to cover this subject, as people within the company would want to
get involved to promote the company and show what they do. There are videos to
promote what the company does, but it is not very well known, by our social
action video it will show the audience how the people in trouble are feeling, and
make it more on a personal level so that people will get more involved and listen.
We can interview the people who work for SHOC and people who are willing to tell
us their stories.

Task 2:
Compare 2 social action video similar to yours
(look at LO2 Brief on website for guidance on what should be covered)

Social Action Video 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjO8hBNSvVI

This social action video involves 2 main interviews. The

first one seen is Judy Sexton, who is an homeless shelter
employee. She explains how the homeless can be any
nationality, from any background, any age or gender and
they will need support to build a new life for themselves.
You are able to see her face in the camera, and can clearly
see that it is an interview by the fact she is looking beyond
the camera, and looks like she is looking at someone. The
second interview is of women called Faray Williams-Jones,
who is a victim of domestic abuse. This a very personal
subject, which is why her face is probably cut out of the
shot. She talks about her situation and what happened to
her, which is a very heart touching and is a horrible
subject to involve.
The footage is at a very smooth transition, and doesnt
look messy.
There is cut a ways within this video as when the girl is
stating the information, there is found footage over it,
which means that the audience can build a relationship
with the narrator, and listen to her more as she is at an
age which is clear to understand and relate to.
There is a lot of found footage within this social action
video which is backing up the points made. One found
footage that stood out to me was involving Jennifer Lopez.
She is an inspiration to many people which is why she
stood out so much. She slept rough at the age of 18 which
is a surprise to how she is now, and that will speak to
people by her being able to change her life round, then so
can anyone.
Style of production- It involves a lot of information and
facts about homelessness that wouldnt have been known
before, it is better to tell the audience facts and figures as
then theyll remember the struggles that people have to
deal with. Id say it does pull on the audiences heartstrings
as it involves very personal stories, and will make the
audience feel empathy for the audience. I wouldnt say its
shocking as it would want people to stay watching, instead
of turning over because they dont like the facts they are
seeing.
Lead presenter- There is a lead presenter who tells the
facts to the audience. This means there is more of a
personal relationship between the characters and the
audience and will stay in the audiences head.

Video 2-
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgmNSH4Z5OE

This example involves a lot more interviews, this means

the audience is able to see the issues that it has caused
on real life situations and what people have done to help.
None of them gives a name or show a face which means
its not very personal and it also gives the people involved
a sense of privacy.
I do feel as though the smoothness of this video is very
messy and involves footage that is not really needed in
between the videos and does not relate to the subject.
There is cut a ways in this video, which I feel is a good
idea because it means theyll remember what is being said
by the visuals they are seeing, and how much they would
like it.
There isnt much found footage but more found photos
that are put in between the interviews. They are just
showing local communities and housing which is just used
to go in something for the background.
- I think this is not a very informative piece of work, but
rather heart touching and pulling on the audiences heart
strings. In some cases this is better as the audience can
feel sympathy for the people involved and feel as though
they can built a relationship rather than just having facts
through at you
Lead presenter- There is no lead presenter and I think that
makes it come across a little less professional, and means
that someone isn't there to introduce everything that is
taking place.

Task 3:
Your research should focus on: Homelessness round the local area.
Background on the Social issue itself:

Homelessness has been a problem since early history. Ryan Moore is my best
mate. Home construction became very specialized when electric wiring and
plumbing was added to the costing of homes. This has continued to be an issue
for many different reasons such as drug addictions, loss of jobs or having no one
to look after you from a young age. Under the Homelessness Act in 2002, local
housing authorities must make some sort of way to prevent homelessness in their
district. They also involve steps in cases where someone as been found to be
homeless but is not owed a duty to secure accommodation under the
homelessness legislation. 7,580 people were recorded as rough sleeping in
London in 2014/15. This number has massively increased since 2007, and now
has doubled in numbers in the mid-2000s. At the end of the year 2015, 15,600
households were living in temporary housing outside their home borough. Some
homeless children and youth are with their families. However, in 2014, it was
recorded to be 45,205 youths unaccompanied, and 80% of these homeless
teenagers use drugs and alcohol to deal with the traumatic experiences and
abuse that they face on a regular basis. Children are the most vurnable grouping
of people, but some feel as though this is the only way to get away from the
situations they have dealt with or, or the only place they have. The consequences
of homelessness can be brutal. It damages peoples capability through loss of
skills, through an inability to think logically about employment whilst worrying
about housing and health. It can also damage peoples resilience, self-esteem and
self-confidence. Isolation and loneliness is a very common trait among people who
are homeless. This makes it difficult for homeless people to cope with lifes
adverse events, including having the ability to overcome lifes difficulties. Building
peoples confidence and skills, offer opportunities for them that they are unable to
help themselves with, this is done by engaging with society and volunteering
groups that can mentor them and help them confidence and push them for a
better life. The effective benefits cut as the housing crisis and increasing numbers
of migration taking place, along with the cuts in funding to service, mean the
number of people who actually have to sleep rough has increased sharply in
recent years, making it difficult for project to finding funding they need to do this
vital work

Above is showing the statistics of different groups of people, for example

only 14% of homeless people round London area are physically disabled,
and 59% of people who are homeless are male.
Support needs and access to care varied. Mental health issues were
frequently vocalized about, but members often cited access to
psychological health services as hard. Day centres and outreach teams
provided significant facilities for people who were rough sleeping. These
included sexual health clinics, opticians, doctors, and welfare benefits
advice, as well as advocacy to access housing.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homelessness-data-notes-and-definitions
http://www.streetsoflondon.org.uk/about-homelessness
https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-homeless-teens
http://www.crisis.org.uk/pages/relationship-breakdown-and-lonliness.html
http://www.homeless.org.uk/facts/our-research/picture-change-repeat-
homelessness-in-brighton

Is there already a social action group to try and prevent the issue? Yes / No

If there is: Who is involved with the group? What effects has the group had on
the community? How has it helped certain individuals? Does it already have an
action video to help its cause? (up load these if there are)

Whilst some homeless people are known to have a community with one another
to get through the day, people whom are not living on the streets help to provide
them food, relational care, or even a friendship. This could be done on an
individual basis or an organisation in a formal sense, or an religious organisation.
Allot of non profit groups such as Crisis provide skill development and work
opportunities for the homeless, some street newspapers has the purpose of jobs,
giving homeless people the ability to see what is available for them, this a none
profited act. The people that get involved with Crisis is campaigners, donors,
partners, fundraisers, volunteers and staff work together to help stop
homelessness around the local area. Coming together in effort to make a
difference. They state that research is extremely important to them, and make
sure that all workers have years of experience of working directly with the
homeless to show change, and a vision to end homelessness for good! They offer
education, employment services, health care and ground breaking houses.
Benefitting the homeless as much as possible. Crisis are very private with the
people that they help and do not exploit their personal situations, but they have
just opened a new skylight centre to help homeless people in Croydon. Crisis
starting working in the area in autumn 2015, giving classes and advice sessions to
drop in centres for people who live on the streets. The move to a permanent,
more stable home will make it easier for homeless people to get the help that is
needed from crisis. Crisis dont actually have a social action documentary
publishing the work that they do, but they have regular press releases to show the
work that they have done, and to write stories about people who they have
helped. This keeps the community engaged and make them knowledgeable of
how bad the situation is.

Are there any famous people involved in trying to prevent the situation?

Many celebrities get involved with the push to prevent homelessness, but
a main famous woman who I feel is an inspiration is Angelina Jolie. She has put
massive support for the independent Christmas campaign for the vulnerable
people that are homeless. She has donated a huge amount of money to the cause
on behalf of the family, and wants to help as much as possible. She works within
many more charities than just homelessness, such as helping refugees in
countries such as Thailand, Iraq, Costa Rica, New Delhi and so on. She wants to be
part of the change as much as possible, and considering she was homeless in a
time of her life as well, it is a very personal subject for her to deal with. Her and
her husband want to make a change and by putting people off the streets, it
makes a better community and will build relationships. Everyone deserves to have
a home, and be in employment and that is the main goal of celebrities who work
within charities, to put their money to a good cause and make a difference.

Is there government backing to prevent the situation? Should there be? What
could they do?

Mr Javid said: No one should have to sleep rough on the streets. We want to
build a country that works for everyone, not just the privileged few. That's why we
are determined to do all we can to help those who lose their homes and provide
them with the support they need to get their lives back on track. The
homelessness reduction bill will significantly reform Englands homelessness
legislation, to ensure that people get the help they need to prevent them
becoming homeless and unemployed. There is many law enforcements to help
prevent homelessness. The Housing (homelessness persons act) (1977) made
local authorities responsible for the long-term housing situation for homeless
people. It gave a clear listing of people who are considered to have a priority
need and therefore need a settled accommodation by local authorities. This
makes a change for many homeless people and hopefully push them to make a
better life for themselves with the added support that they need. An international
law is the declaration of human rights in 1948. This is also to increase the change
and focus on the human right to housing, travel and migration as a part of self-
determination. In England, the Vagrancy Act 1824 makes it an offence to sleep on
the streets or to beg for money. This became a crime and when the act was
published, it gathered a lot of criticism. In the USA, the court appeals to held up
against the Eighth Amendment prohibits the city for punishing involuntary sitting,
lying or sleeping on public sidewalks that is an unavoidable consequence. This
means that they will allow them to sleep rough if need be, and will try as much as
possible to stop it. The government of England support for the bill confirmed 40
million to provide and tackle homelessness. This is a big sum, and will benefit
homelessness people across the country because of the governments want to
help.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homelessness-data-notes-and-definitions

http://www.crisis.org.uk/data/files/publications/The%20homelessness
%20legislation,%20an%20independent%20review%20of%20the%20legal
%20duties%20owed%20to%20homeless%20people.pdf

How does the issue effect the community / nation / world?

Homelessness effects people all around the world. In the community,
homelessness comes At a very high cost. Studies show that communities save
money by providing supportive housing to people who are homeless, emergency
rooms, crisis response and public systems are utilized at a much higher rate by
the homeless, meaning a lot of money go out to them rather than doing
community activates.
the average cost of an A&E visit is 147; 4 out of 10 experiencing homelessness
have used A&E in last six month
1,668 is the average cost per arrest; 7 out of 10 homeless ex-offenders are
reconvicted within one year
26, 000 is the estimated average cost of a homeless person each year to public
purse
1 billion is the estimated annual cost of homelessness
(http://www.unitedwaymcca.org/homelessness-our-community-affects-us-all)
( http://www.homeless.org.uk/facts/understanding-homelessness/impact-of-
homelessness)
Homelessness tears apart families, this happens all round the country, the
homeless hotspots include Birmingham, Slough, Bristol, Brighton, Reading,
Luton, and Manchester. This shows that homelessness is effecting everyone in the
country, and it is the support from volunteers around us that is going to make a
chance, and build a better community with everyone rather than just the location
you live in. In the world, an estimated 100 million people were homeless
worldwide in 2005. The world has the same struggle of homelessness in every
country. Pushing to come together to make an agreement to prevent it and make
a better environment. Inadequate housing takes a variety of forms world-wide,
including buses and shipping containers, (in Israel), cages (Hong Kong), cellars,
staircases, containers and rooftops (Europe), every country have their different
ways to give shelter to the homeless, and all want to prevent the issue by
volunteering, and campaigning.

Look at statistics on the social issue

 http://www.homeless.org.uk/facts/homelessness-in-numbers/health-needs-audit-
explore-data
http://england.shelter.org.uk/campaigns_/why_we_campaign/housing_facts
_and_figures/subsection?section=homeless_households
http://www.homelessnessaustralia.org.au/index.php/about-
homelessness/homeless-statistics

What can be done to prevent the issue from happening?

By giving education and employment to those who are less fortunate to find it
themselves, or have lack of funds to be able to pay for it. It about lasting solutions
to stop it recurring. Governments have made it a priority to providing funding and
support to improve homelessness. In order for homelessness to decrease, the
community will have to put in strong efforts to prevent the risks of the homeless
losing the grip on housing to begin with. The help could be effective strategies to
sustain their public, private or community housing, and push the government
systems such as hospitals, the justice system and mental health services as these
are very important systems, which could prevent people becoming homeless and
be left to deal with the struggle by themselves. Work is harder to find, and
housing prices has risen, this is exposing people to a dangerous life on the streets
when it should be prevented way before, when help is given. This could be by
lowing their housing fees, or getting them into employment to be able to pay for
their living situation. Another way to prevent homelessness would be to build
public and political support blocks, this brings individuals together and make the
homeless people feel as though they are supported and get through it with the
help they need. This would bring the community together, and would create a
national voice for ending the homelessness crisis. People who experience
domestic violence are offered 'sanctuary schemes', involving the installation of
security measures within the home, this is helpful as it will make their mental
state in a better place, and make the homeless feel as though they are not alone.
 http://www.homeground.org.au/what-we-do/preventing-homelessness/
http://england.shelter.org.uk/campaigns_/why_we_campaign/tackling_hom
elessness/homelessness_prevention

Task 4
Contact details and angle

Informative, educational or change of attitude?

Discuss why and how you will achieve this.

The three elements above are very important within a social action documentary.
I feel as though having information involved it will make the audience remember
how bad the situation is and what they can do to change it. The information will
then stick in the audiences minds. I will do this in my social action by involving the
important data that the audience will be able to remember. Changing the attitude
of the audience is one of the main purposes of the documentary. To make their
opinions change and feel more compassion towards the homeless, and feel as
though they can help. I will do this in my documentary by having interviews
involved with people who have/are homeless. This means there is more of a
connection between the audience and the people with the traumatic experiences,
and means it takes away the typical look that people give on homeless people.
The whole reason for my video is to educate people, and for them to understand
how much homelessness has increased in the years, and there are many ways
that they are able to help.

List of found footage you can use and reference where it has come from

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This is the shocking truth of how people dismiss the homeless, but would
help someone who is different.

What ethical issues will you have to overcome or be careful documenting?

It is a very touchy subject, to be careful for the subject we would have to keep an
open mind about each individual people. Approaching the homeless for interviews
will be difficult because not everyone will be willing to talk to us, therefore we will
have to choose our wording accordingly and show compassion towards them.
When editing I would have to be careful with the footage I involve, and make sure
that everyone I film is comfortable with their faces being shown.

List of social action groups you could interview. Can you follow a volunteer or
member of the project?

We have contacted a volunteer group called SHOC in Slough, Berkshire. We would

hope to get some interviews with the members within the project, talking about
what they do and how they go about the homeless to make a difference. This is
important for the audience to see as it educates them on things that they can do
to change, and make a difference. Then we can possibly interview people who
they have worked with, and changed the course of their lives, this is good to
involve as it will show how people can change their life, and are not all the typical
homeless person that is originally thought of.

Research on the subject: Research around the subject? Information that you
need to know BEFORE you interview people
 Slough has a high proportion of privately rented homes, which comprise 24% of
all homes in the area, which is compared to the South East of England which is
only 16%.
The demand for housing in Slough has shot up, driving up the costs within the
borough. The average monthly rental cost in slough is 811, this is difficult for
some people to achieve and pay every month.
In November 2015, surveys were taken to find 908 people sleeping rough. This is
no formal statistics or shown their demographics or local intelligence. These
people are found to live in tents in various locations around the area, and have
employment but for little cash in hand money. This is showing that people cannot
normal living circumstances but still have the education and ability to work.
Slough have a strategy to prevent homelessness, this is to give support for the
vulnerable people, and to provide more settled homes.

This is some of the ways Slough Borough feel as though the can help prevent
homelessness and create a nicer environment to live in.
Since 2005, there has been a variety of events and development within the
strategy. This includes offers by the local authority of permanent housing within
6-12 months, the homeless are able to have three offers of their choice,
averagely rehousing time of 3-5 years.
Prevention and Support for Young People
Highest priority:
Housing Benefit processes, communication and Transaction time.
Private rented accommodation
not enough of it or help to access, HB single room rate makes it a less
viable option
Moveon accommodation lacks a strategy to manage expectation and
limited supply.
Tenancy sustainability-
Appropriate timely support that follows a young person.
Housing advice
Consistent and realistic advice that is widely
Available
Substance misuse
Access routes to rehab and substance misuse
 Advice are unclear.

This is showing how they are able to prevent the issue now but the
consistent and realistic help and advice they can follow and present to
the homeless.

http://www.slough.gov.uk/council/joint-strategic-needs-assessment/housing-and-
homelessness.aspx
http://www.slough.gov.uk/downloads/homelessness-strategy.pdf
http://www.sloughexpress.co.uk/gallery/slough/108611/slough-identified-as-
homeless-hotspot-as-number-rise-steadily.html
http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/advice_services_directory/slough
http://www.slough.gov.uk/housing/homeless-or-at-risk.aspx

Shelter chief executive, Campbell Robb, said: This is the tragic result of
a nation struggling under the weight of sky-high rents, a lack of
affordable homes and cuts to welfare support.
We must pull together to end this crisis.
Mandy McGuire, from the charity Slough Homeless Our Concern (SHOC), which
runs a homeless support centre in Burlington Avenue, said: Ive worked in the
homeless sector in Slough for 26 years and its certainly the worst Ive ever
known it.

Slough Borough Council opens an emergency night shelter when below freezing
temperatures are forecast for three consecutive nights.
Shelters Berkshire centre also holds a regular court desk at Slough county court
on a weekly basis, where advice and support is offered to those entitled to free
legal aid.

Shelter offered me a lifeline. I spoke to someone who understood my fear, let

me cry, let me rant and then started to give me practical advice to try and
ensure the boys and I had somewhere to live in 2014.
Lou
Website of shelter Slough. (Link above)
In severe weather, slough offer emergency accommodation for rough
sleepers, during any periods of severe winter weather between the 1 st of
November and 31 of March. This means that it provides support to those
who are at risk of harm due to rough sleeping, which includes teams to
help includes SHOC, My Council, or the Salvation Army in Stoke Road.
The service offered by SHOC-

Day centre for homeless or vulnerable adults. Advice and assistance on housing,
health, benefits and substance misuse. Advocacy worker, resettlement and
tenancy sustainment service. Shower, laundry and clothing store. Fully equipped
learning centre on 1st floor offering a wide range of training courses.

Where it is-
 What shots / cut a ways / footage will you need to film in order for the social
action video to have impact?
I am going to try and make my documentary as heart touching as
possible, and have a lot of interviews involved in it with people who are
seriously neglected by the public and arent the typical homeless person
that we all think of. I want to involve found footage too of other people
doing good things for the homeless, and also footage of showing how the
homeless are the same as everyone else (seen on found footage above). I
will involve interviews with people who are volunteers and ill involve this
so that the audience is able to see the difference it can make on
someones life to be more helpful. I want to have a lot of information
involved, the key facts about my issue so that it sticks with the audience,
and hopefully change their views on homelessness. I think having cut a
ways makes a negative effect on the footage because it takes away the
main focus, and with too many things going on, the audiences wouldnt
remember what is happening.

Interviews
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Name:

Position:
Involvement in action:

What can they discuss in the video?

Where can they be interviewed?

Phone number:

Email address:

Name:

Position:

Involvement in action:

What can they discuss in the video?

Where can they be interviewed?

Phone number:

Email address:

Name:

Position:

Involvement in action:

What can they discuss in the video?

Where can they be interviewed?

Phone number:

Email address: