BBC’s ‘Line of Duty’ and ‘In the Club’ actress Taj Atwal has been working with young people who are currently being supported by the youth homelessness charity SASH, as part of research for a play she is writing about her own experiences of homelessness.
She too was supported by SASH over a decade ago before starting on the path to become an actress.
Providing emergency Nightstop service as well as Supported Lodgings
SASH (Safe and Sound Homes) helps 16-25 year olds avoid homelessness across North and East Yorkshire, by providing emergency Nightstop service as well as longer-term Supported Lodgings accommodation of up to two years, all of which is delivered by volunteer hosts. Last year, SASH helped over 320 young people.
Miss Atwal had to leave home at sixteen and lived with SASH volunteer ‘hosts’ for two years until she left York to study at Guildford School of Acting. She is writing a play, Paradise Fields, based on her own story about a teenager who could not live at home. She was keen to have input on the script from young people who are in a similar situation today and so SASH arranged a drama workshop with four young people they are currently supporting.
She said: “When I left home, my best friend at the time was also in SASH. The play is based on the experiences of those two girls, what they go on to achieve, their highs and lows, the fun, the upsets. It’s a coming of age story, about what you have to go through when you can’t live at home and how quickly you’ve got to become an adult, when all you want to do is just be a 16 or 17 year old.
If you peel back the layers, there is suffering within these young people
“As you’re walking about in York, you think how beautiful it is, but if you peel back the layers, there is suffering within these young people. Through the play I want to get rid of this misconception that many people have of what it’s like to be homeless. I want to make people aware that homelessness doesn’t just mean a sleeping bag on the street. I am trying to give an insight of what it’s like to be 16-25 if you have to leave home and you do not have the support of something like SASH, how fine the line is between ending up on the streets.
I’m still close to my hosts
“The support I got from SASH was amazing – just to have that step up before full independence, to have that support. I’m still close to my hosts. They come to every performance I’m in!”
Those taking part in the workshop really valued the experience of working with someone who had been in their position and understood what they were going through. Eighteen year-old Ryan said: “It really helped me get a lot out that I haven’t said before. Overall it was just an amazing experience”.
SASH currently has around 90 hosts across North and East Yorkshire however urgently needs more. Operations Manager Adele Coupe said: “Our hosts are wonderful people and Taj’s story is testament to the impact that they can have on a young person at a time of great need. SASH is currently seeking to recruit more hosts to help meet demand for its services. They are people of all ages and different life stages. Hosting with SASH can be flexible around your existing commitments and we provide full training, ongoing support as well as small financial benefits. If you have a spare room and would like to help, please do get in touch.”
The next step for Paradise Fields will be a reading at the Manchester Royal Exchange in Septemberat the High Tide Festival in Aldeburgh, then the play will go on tour.
To find out more about becoming a volunteer host with SASH you can visit www.sash-uk.org.uk/ or call Adele on 01904 652043.