Once in a while you hear a story that makes you sit up and take note. This week the Engligh newspapers have been full of the tragic case of Fiona Pilkington, a 38-year-old single mother from Leicestershire, UK, who, after years of harassment and intimidation from local youths, was driven to commit suicide and kill her severely disabled 18-year-old daughter, Francecca.
For years they had suffered abuse, including verbal attacks, and stones, flour and eggs were regularly thrown at the family home. Added to the strains of caring for her daughter, it is little wonder Fiona Pilkington reached breaking point.
This shocking case has sparked fury among the public. The palpable anger in letters pages and on radio phone-ins bear witness to this. Yesterday Prime Minister Gordon Brown added his voice to the popular outcry by condemning parents who let their kids ‘run riot’ and announcing the roll-out of family intervention projects for the 50,000 ‘most chaotic’ families, in his speech to the Labour Party Conference.
Next month NPC will publish two reports that address the problems at the heart of this story. Getting back on track investigates the problems of young people not in education, employment or training, some of which undoubtedly contributed to making the Pilkington family’s tormentors. And Rights of passage looks at the challenges facing disabled young people such as Francecca, and their families, as they make the transition to adulthood.
Both pieces of research highlight the role that charities can play in preventing seemingly insoluble social problems. For example, Fairbridge picks up the sort of young people described in the Pilkington case—those who may be excluded from school or involved in crime or antisocial behaviour—and helps them to find a purpose in their lives. Mencap supports families living with disability to take control of their lives, to be both independent and part of their local community. Importantly they also campaign against the kind of abuse Fiona Pilkington and her family experienced.
The components of the Pilkington case—bored and unruly youths and struggling vulnerable families—are commonplace. But the tragic outcome can be prevented.
