NEWS PRODUCTION: ROUGH SCRIPT by Zak Wilkins

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Today:
With numbers as high as 874 and growing, today we explore the growing homelessness crisis in the Medway area and the issues they face finding homes or dealing with life on the streets.

(Slow zoom in, ending on MS))

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(30 Secs)

Hello and welcome to Short Attention Span News, tonight we’re looking at the care afforded to some of our most marginalised and vulnerable.
Twenty-two thousand one hundred people are recorded homeless in the South-East of England and with ever rising house prices and rapid benefit cuts that number grows every day. XX XXXX is at Homeless Care’s Maidstone conference, discussing what kind of support is being offered to Kent’s growing homeless.

((MS))

REPORTER AT CONFERENCE, TEXT: BEARSTEAD

Thank you XXX, I’m here at Tudor Park hotel where we’ve heard of hope for a better future for Kent’s homeless. But with the upcoming winter months being some of the toughest for people with nowhere for the night and Brexit seeing an increasing number of families losing their jobs and their homes, what’s being done to ensure any ‘at risk’ people in our community are given a safe place to stay?

CAMERA PAN TO INCLUDE JOHN LITTLEMORE
I’m here with John Littlemore, Head of housing for Maidstone Borough Council – Mr. Littlemore, in 2016 a report from shelter found the number of people living in temporary accomidation in Maidstone to be 234 the 6^th highest in Kent. Where does that number stand these days?

And how are you coping with that change in numbers?

Thank you Mr.Littlemore.

I now turn to Rick Henderson, CEO of Homeless Link. Mr. Henderson, with Brexit seeing many families at risk of losing their jobs and potentially their homes – what is being done to try and prevent Kent’s homeless crisis becoming any more urgent?

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Thank you, XXXX.
And now to XX, XXXX who is looking into The Homeless Period’s petition to help get homeless women access to free sanitary products.

(Shots of homeless women, sanitary products)

For one week a month, the challenges of living on the streets gets exponentially tougher for women all over the country. With limited or no access to sanitary products of any kind, women are forced to use scraps of whatever they can find or go without. With serious repercussions to their physical and mental health and men being granted access to razors and condoms through government support then why are our most vulnerable women being forced to suffer?

I spoke to XX XXXX from Homeless Period, a charity asking just that.

INTERVIEW WITH REP:

-How can people help?
-Sign the petition, get donating! Crowd funding.

-Your campaign got raised in Parliament last December – what progress have you seen since then?

-Onwards and upwards.

With the need for sanitary products so high, I decided to visit a local foodbank and bring a large donation for local women in need and find out just how useful this service is.

TAKING PERIOD PRODUCTS TO BANKS, INTERVIEW HOMELESS WOMEN: Q’s: How useful are these services? Where would you be without them?

With the harsher winter months close approaching, Kent’s ever growing homeless population are more vulnerable than ever. But with your help their hardship can get a bright spark of hope this Winter. Thank you and good night.

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