Project Brennan – St Patricks Comprehensive School Shannon

Why as a team did you choose to focus on this challenge?

We as a team decided to choose this topic because of how overlooked it is in society today. We picked this topic due to the lack of knowledge there is about it and how it's not talked about enough. We want people to come out and not be ashamed about almost being in poverty so we can help before it's too late. Homelessness is becoming more of a crisis and is already more common than it should be. We would like to be able to lower the chances of being a victim in hidden poverty.

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What do you know now about the challenge that you didn't know before?

From our research, we discovered that 45% of people that are facing the affects of hidden poverty are single-parent families. Like many, we didn't know how big of a problem this is and how many families are very close to being in poverty or being homeless. Now that we have done research on this topic, we would like to make a stand and help bring an end to it. We know it can lead to other family members having to cover financial problems for you every now and again which isn't something that should be happening.

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What have you learnt about your Hero?

We learnt that our hero is divorced and has lost custody of his kids which has caused him to develop depression. He is also working in a factory making minimum wage but does not work full hours which means he's barely making enough to pay his rent and energy bills due to recent cost of living crisis. This has not helped his mental health as he's living on pay check to pay check and being left with less than €10 to spend on his irregular expenditure on himself and spending money to go out with friends.

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If you could improve one thing for your Hero what would that be?

I would improve the way he managed his finances and the way he spent his money on things that weren't really necessary to buy. I would improve the ways to get through this situation and making life easier for himself. He could really ask the government for help if he's really stuck. But he is a strong man, he can get through this situation without asking anyone for help. He could improve some life skills if it's necessary to use. He is a great father and leader to the family.

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Do you have any ideas for a potential solution? No matter how raw, share them with your Mentors for feedback.

As a team we thought of multiple solutions and ways that people should be able to talk about being so close to being in poverty. Like a hidden poverty anonymous. Like what we do for people who drink like aa or some type of company that can help you manage your money better and tell you what to buy so that you don't over spend on things you cant afford like some financial adviser. And another good idea we had, is a single parent allowance that helps feed your kids.

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Ask your Mentor anything …. This is a chance to ask your Mentors a direct question relating to your Big Idea.

I dont have a lot of questions but here are some of them. When did you start researching the topic, why did you pick this like we did, did you know you wanted to do this or did you only get into it recently, how did you end up doing hidden poverty, did you know someone or were you someone going through hidden poverty, what would you do to stop this problem, how would you promote getting help for people who think it's useless. Thank you for reading my questions.