Guest blog: From a whisper to speaking out loud

Being asked to speak at the Poverty Alliance Annual Conference was … terrifying, exciting, a bit stressful and very flattering.  Why?  Because I’m not a lecturer or an academic with lots of facts, figures and policies at my finger-tips – I’m just me!  But, thanks to the Poverty Alliance, over the last five years I’ve come to realise that being me is enough and my voice and words are just as important and meaningful as everyone else’s.

The theme of the 2024 conference was “Making Change Happen” and the workshop which I spoke at was focussing on “Grassroots up: Getting our communities organised”.  Making any sort of meaningful, positive change can be hugely challenging, but with the right people in the right place with the right support – almost anything is possible.

End Poverty Edinburgh, the group which I am part of, is a great example of this.  The Poverty Alliance recognised that for change to happen, you need to engage with the very people that the change is going to affect.  They brought together a group of people, from various backgrounds and asked us to share our lived experiences in relation to poverty and how this really affects people.

Our voices started off as a whisper – we were a small group of individuals who had yet to get to know each other and who needed to grow in confidence and belief that our views and experiences were valuable in shaping the future.

Over the last five years End Poverty Edinburgh members have contributed to improving numerous local government policies and procedures, we’ve attended and spoken at meetings and events with a variety of organisations and although the wheels of bureaucracy move incredibly slowly, we have seen some shift in the attitudes of those who hold the power (and the purse strings) – some recognition and acknowledgement that poverty is not a life style choice and that only changes to the systems of local and central government can put an end to the shameful levels of poverty that exist in our country.

When I spoke at the conference, I mentioned that living in poverty is about more than just money (or the lack of it!).  You lose any feeling of self-respect, self-confidence, dignity – and you don’t feel worthy of having a voice or an opinion.  Being part of End Poverty Edinburgh has gone a long way to giving me these things back again – and that is priceless.

I believe that lots of people living in poverty would love to have their voices heard and to contribute to making the lives of others better – they just don’t know where to start.  That is where organisations like Poverty Alliance are invaluable as they can help to bring our voices to the fore.

I spoke with so many people at the conference, from numerous organisations, and it was immediately apparent that these people were there because they believed that change was possible and that they could help to make that happen if the right people listened to what they were saying.  They, like myself, saw what the effects of living in poverty did to people, to whole generations of families.  They understood the physical and mental impacts of poverty.  They understood the stigma and the shame associated with poverty.  They understood the value of individuals in their communities – regardless of their income.

My mother told me that everyone, regardless of their income or status, has something to offer/give/contribute.  By bringing End Poverty Edinburgh, and other groups of individuals together the Poverty Alliance has proven my mum right!

I left the conference with a smile on my face, hope in my heart and the realisation that I wasn’t alone and forgotten – there were hundreds of people in that room who saw me and recognised that I, like them, was someone who had something to give and could help to end poverty in our country.

Thank you to Poverty Alliance and everyone who attended the conference for not ignoring and dismissing the reality of poverty and the thousands of people who feel invisible and forgotten about.