Category

• Promising Local Practice

---

Poverty driver

• Provide benefit in-kind (experience)

---

Keywords

• Lived Experience
• Empowerment
• Research and Evaluation
• Education
• Community Engagement

Aim

• Reduce Stigma.
• Raise Awareness.
• Empower Young People.
• Influence Social Policy.
• Deliver a series of themed, interactive sessions in schools over a set period.
• Engage pupils in discussions on topics such as stigma, food poverty and hidden costs of education.
• Provide a safe space for pupils to share personal experiences.
• Refer pupils for further support when needed.
• Strengthen partnerships between schools, their local Citizens Advice Bureau and the wider community.

Summary

‘Our Voices, Our Stories’ is a pilot programme delivered in partnership with West Dunbartonshire Citizens Advice Bureau to explore poverty stigma and its impact on pupils’ and their family's willingness to seek support. S1 pupils take part in biweekly sessions on poverty, empathy, diversity, and community support, using storytelling to create comic books that open up conversations about stigma. The Project offers a youth-led and creative way for pupils to express their views and reflect on their experiences. These narratives provide valuable insight for schools and partner agencies, supporting more stigma aware practice and informing wider discussions on inclusive and anti-poverty approaches.

What difference does it make?

The Project has helped pupils to view poverty in a more realistic and compassionate way. Many students involved in the Project demonstrated an enhanced understanding and were able to articulate how stigma negatively affects people’s confidence and ability to access help. For example, one pupil said, “If someone is not included, they will not be able to ask for help if something goes wrong”. Others linked poverty to fairness and structural inequality, noting “Some people are in poverty because they don’t get paid enough. After the bills are paid, there’s not enough left”.

The Project has helped pupils to view poverty in a more realistic and compassionate way. Many students involved in the Project demonstrated an enhanced understanding and were able to articulate how stigma negatively affects people’s confidence and ability to access help. For example, one pupil said, “If someone is not included, they will not be able to ask for help if something goes wrong”. Others linked poverty to fairness and structural inequality, noting “Some people are in poverty because they don’t get paid enough. After the bills are paid, there’s not enough left”.

The storytelling process helped pupils work through sensitive themes in a safe and imaginative way. Their characters dealt with issues such as eviction, food insecurity, bullying, and family strain. Facilitators observed that pupils were increasingly able to connect these fictional stories to the real challenges young people face in their communities. Survey evidence supported this growth.

Pupils valued the creative elements most, especially story development (66.7 percent), drawing the comic (66.7 percent), and group discussions. One hundred percent of pupils said their ideas were listened to, demonstrating how important the space was for their confidence and engagement.
Teachers and facilitators also reported more reflective conversations in class. They noticed pupils were more willing to challenge stereotypes and think critically about support, kindness, and inclusion. Comments like, “there’s always someone who needs help, so you shouldn’t be embarrassed yourself” demonstrated how the pupils’ attitudes were shifting towards empathy rather than blame.

Overall, the Project has created a more open and understanding environment, one where pupils can speak about poverty, fairness, and stigma without fear of judgement. The combination of creative learning, trust-building, and structured discussion has produced noticeable changes in how pupils think, talk, and act.

The Project is making a meaningful contribution to tackling poverty, not by providing direct financial support, but by changing how poverty is perceived and talked about. By challenging stigma, promoting empathy, and giving young people tools to recognise and respond to inequality, the Project is helping to shift attitudes that often act as barriers to support and inclusion. It’s creating space for honest conversations and giving pupils the confidence to speak up about their experiences, or to better support others. In doing so, it’s helping to build more compassionate school communities, which is a vital part of addressing the wider impacts of poverty in the long term.

The Project also aligns well with national policy priorities around child poverty, equity in education, and mental health and well-being. It provides a practical, school based approach that supports these aims and demonstrates how tackling stigma can be part of wider anti-poverty strategies.

Key take-aways

• The value of a flexible, co-creation approach that actively involves pupils in shaping content, boosting engagement and relevance.
• Being open to adapting plans and sessions in response to pupil needs helps maintain momentum and impact.
• Using creative formats like graphic novels makes complex topics like poverty more accessible for young people.
• Patience is essential, especially when working with 12–13-year-olds who are creating comics about poverty. They need to be taught academic language and policy ideas in accessible ways since, while they instinctively understand poverty and hardship, they might not know the why, or how to communicate these experiences.
• Measuring impact takes time, as attitude and behaviour changes develop gradually and require ongoing evaluation.

 

Organisations

West Dunbartonshire Citizens Advice Bureau, The Glasgow Social Policy Project, Glasgow Caledonian University, St Peter the Apostle High School. West Dunbartonshire Citizens Advice Bureau. PhD Researcher at GCU, aligned to the Scottish Poverty and Inequality Research Unit.

Location

Currently operative within the Clydebank area of Glasgow.

Contact