Transition is arguably one of the most researched areas of ‘youth’, and has been extensively chronicled from various different perspectives (see Furlong and Cartmel, 1997; Irwin, 1995; Henderson et al, 2006; Social Exclusion Unit, 2005).
Transitions which were prominent in vulnerable young people’s narratives seemed to relate to four key areas: (i) moving house (either within the city or within the UK
─ often both had been experienced); (ii) moving to the UK from abroad; and (iii)
moving schools. Each is now considered in turn along with some more general comments about transitions.
Almost uniformly across the sample, young people had experiences of moving a number of times. Moving was a particularly notable theme, discussed in relation to moves within the care system (6 interviewees), moving to the UK from abroad (3 interviewees), and moving to a different city, town or region within the UK (9 interviewees). Brook (F, 16) described how she had moved within the case study city five times, commenting “I've been about a bit, haven't I?”. Whereas Brook joked about this, other young people acknowledged more serious consequences (see 8.1.2). The prevalence of moving house is perhaps unsurprising given that there is some evidence to suggest that the most disadvantaged families are those most likely to move around a lot (cf Gasper et al, 2010). There was sometimes a sense that moving house was a response to the housing system or other aspects of the welfare system. Keith’s story was one example:
I've been at my nana’s for the past five years, but I've had like a couple of month of that because she couldn't get me into ─ well she got me into school, but she couldn't get help. You know like things I needed, like benefits and stuff like that. ‘Cos I'd come from one area and moved straight into another area without letting them know, they couldn't do it all straight away. So she had to send me back to my Dad for a couple of month. (Keith, M, 16)
Another reason indicated for young people’s moves seemed to relate to the fracturing of family units. Interviewees would often discuss having lived with different members of their family after or during the breakdown of parental relationships or during periods where their parents were struggling to cope in one way or another.
Five young people in the sample had moved to the UK from abroad. These young people had often moved several times since arriving in the UK, to different towns and cities, and also appeared to have moved around extensively within the case study city. Difficulty in leaving family members and friends behind in the country of
origin was cited as the most difficult aspect of moving to the UK, along with not being able to speak English. Anna (F, 12), who had moved from Lithuania at around the age of nine, explained:
Anna: when I come to England, it was difficult ‘cos I can’t even talk, I can’t understand what somebody talks, and I just stay at home, and after, my Mum was talking better than me, but now she can’t talk better than me [smiles]
Kate: You’re really good now, aren’t you. And were you scared when you came?
Anna: Yeah I were really scared. When we go to the airport and we were waiting for the aeroplane I was really scared and I was crying ‘cos I didn’t want to leave my Dad.
Anna had not seen her father since she had moved to the UK three years ago, but hoped to see him the following year. Starting school in this country also seemed to be particularly stressful for young people who had moved from abroad. When I asked Elle, who had moved from Eritrea, what her first day at school in the UK was like, she explained:
…it was scary ‘cos it was our first day and yeah, I couldn’t speak much English at that time, so yeah, it was hard. (Elle, F, 14)
Moving home was often experienced along with moving to a different school. Life stories largely supported the existence of a connection between moving house and periods of absence from school (Haveman et al, 1991; Grumen et al, 2008). Peter Schmeichel (M, 16) had attended several schools as a result of moves within the care system, which had caused major problems in terms of absence:
I were with [High School A] and then I went into foster care. Then moved to [city in the Midlands] and then moved back. Went to ─ spent six months out of school or eight months out of school ─ then went to [High School B]. ‘Cos
I'd been out of school that long, I wasn't up to it, so they put me on [Specialist off-site education provision]. (‘Peter Schmeichel’, M, 16) Transitions within the care system were a particular theme which will be further considered in Chapter 8 (see 8.1.2). As well as periods of school absence, moving schools was most commonly reported to cause problems in terms of peer groups and making new friends:
… once you move you have to start all over again, make friends and just get to know everyone. It’s like a game, once you just get something new and start again. (‘Jeremy Clarkson’, M, 15)
Bullying (see 6.1.3) was also often mentioned alongside the descriptions of moving schools.
Generally speaking, young people recounted childhoods characterised by a series of what might be viewed as substantial transitions in various areas of their lives. This supports broader research which has indicated that that ‘socially excluded’ or
‘vulnerable’ young people in particular face an increasingly uncertain world (Johnston et al; 2000; MacDonald et al, 2005). Yet it was not unusual for complex stories of movement and transition to be covered with brevity:
I got adopted when I were four. I stopped with my Mum when she were taking Heroin and my Dad were in prison at the time and they couldn’t look after me. And then my adopted place was broke down when I were 12, then my Mum died when I were 11… 11. Then it broke down when I was 12 and I went to live with my grandma, my birth grandma. And from living with her I went into care (Alicia, F, 16)
A tone of acceptance was present in many of the young people’s descriptions of substantial transitions they had experienced. Generally speaking, ‘vulnerable’
young people appeared to feel as if such transitions were an inevitable or familiar part of their experiences of childhood and youth, but this is not to say they did not see certain difficulties or problems as associated with them (see 8.1.2).