The Tightrope is a sculpture inspired by real people living across the UK, striving to do their best by their families.
Rising living costs. Unstable work. Low wages. Cuts and freezes to social security. More and more families feel trapped by a lack of financial options that can limit their children’s lives and their futures.
Day to day, it’s a precarious balance to make sure their families are provided for, with an unreliable safety net to catch them if they fall.
The pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis has taught us how quickly our lives can turn upside down. It also reminded us how important it is to support each other through tough times.
What do you think, if anything, we should do to support these families?
Even before the pandemic, over a third of children in the UK were experiencing poverty. Parents say they are making impossible choices between skipping meals so that their children can eat or putting the heating on to keep them warm.
No child should miss out on what they need for a happy childhood. To struggle to concentrate at school because there wasn’t enough for breakfast. Or to have clothes that don’t fit because they’re growing fast but the energy bills are growing faster. Or to be at risk of growing up feeling anxious, isolated and lacking self- worth.
POVERTY LIMITS CHILDREN’S LIVES AND FUTURES. LET'S GIVE EVERY CHILD AN EQUAL CHANCE.
We spoke to parents across The UK who shared their stories with us and inspired the sculpture.
What is it like living in poverty?
Read Michelle's story of what it is like living in poverty and the stigma she faced, even from her own family.
Want to see the Tightrope?
If you want to see The Tightrope in person, you can see it in:
- Saturday 12th November 2022: Saunders Market, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
The art piece will also include a free circus skills workshop that the whole family can enjoy.
Have you seen The Tightrope? Let us know what you think!
If you have seen The Tightrope in Stoke-On-Trent let us know what you thought of it, and what we could change or do better by filling in our short survey.
