What happens when you’re 17 years old and you suddenly find yourself homeless? As a child, you would expect that social services and other authorities would find you a warm and safe place to live. What you wouldn’t expect is to be put somewhere on your own, in the cold, and at risk from serious harm. File on 4 tells the shocking story of one teenager's experience when he found himself without a roof over his head. His mum tells the programme he would contact her in the middle of the night, depressed and lonely; “He would text me saying I’m cold, I’m hungry”. She says the fight to get her son the care and support that he needed has left them broken. We explore the impact on both his physical and mental health and ask why he was let down? Is his case one of a kind? Or are other local authorities failing in their duty to provide the right care and support for homeless young people? Reporter: Emma Forde
Producer: Matthew Chapman
Editor: Gail ChampionPhoto credit; Photofusion\Getty
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Politik
File on 4 Folgen
Award-winning current affairs documentary series investigating major issues at home and abroad
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428 Folgen
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Folge vom 30.10.2018My Homeless Son
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Folge vom 23.10.2018Criminal WasteIt’s been called “the new narcotics”, a crime that promises high-rewards with little fear of being detected, and it is attracting criminal gangs usually associated with drugs and violence. “Waste crime”; the illegal disposal of the UK’s mountains of often hazardous rubbish, and those involved are finding new and inventive ways of cashing in. File on 4 investigates how gangs hide hundreds of tonnes of waste in fields and makeshift tips around the country, and goes out with enforcement officers as they raid factories and depots around the country. The crime costs the UK an estimated 600 million pounds a year, as it’s escalated from opportunist fly-tipping to a dangerous and competitive criminal industry. One farmer tells the programme how he was confronted by hooded men when he went to investigate suspicious activity on his land. The gang dumped 100 tonnes of waste before switching their lorry number plates and driving off. Three days later, a nearby farm was also hit, with another 100 tonnes, and again the gang escaped. Others use their own premises to hide hazardous waste. They set up a legitimate operation, with licenses to process harmless rubbish. But that’s just a front, a technique to trick to investigators from the Environment Agency. Behind the legal piles of rubbish are hundreds of tonnes of hazardous material. The authorities are trying to fight back. But do they have the resources they need? Reporter: Paul Kenyon Producer: Sally Chesworth Editor: Gail Champion
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Folge vom 16.10.2018Fuelling the future?Five years ago the UK’s biggest bioethanol plant opened in Hull as part of a £1 billion investment in renewable biofuel. Last month, the Vivergo site ceased production with the loss of more than 100 jobs. The knock-on effects have been felt by hauliers and some 900 farms across the region, which supplied the plant with wheat to be converted into fuel.The closure comes just 5 months after ministers set new, ambitious targets to double the use of sustainable fuels - like bioethanol - by 2020. The government says it's committed to green energy - its recent ‘Clean Growth Strategy’ claims plans are in place to cut greenhouse gases by more than half of 1990 levels by 2030. And yet, research shows investment in green energy fell 56% last year, the biggest drop of any country - with policy change, subsidy cuts and 'stop-start' support from ministers being blamed. So, do Britain’s plans for a greener future add up? File on 4 takes to the road to find out. On a trip around the North East of England, Simon Cox asks why, when the offshore wind industry has grown, other cheap, renewable energies like onshore wind, solar power and now biofuels are struggling to survive. He examines whether changes in policy are hitting crucial investment, and if ambitious climate targets will really be met.Reporter: Simon Cox Producers: Mick Tucker and Oliver Newlan Editor: Gail ChampionPhoto: Thanet wind farm. Credit: Reuters.
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Folge vom 11.10.2018Paying the Price - Private HospitalsFor many NHS patients, being referred for private treatment can sound quite appealing; you'll often be seen and treated quickly, with a more luxurious menu option to peruse in the comfort of your private room.But when it comes to the medical treatment, are patients getting the same level of care? Are private patients just as safe as those in the NHS? And when things do go wrong, how willing is the private sector to admit to mistakes?In this programme we hear from families whose loved ones died following surgery in a private hospital that was paid for by the NHS. The deaths reveal how some private hospitals have no emergency cover for when things go wrong. To secure a contract with the NHS, private providers must deliver services to an equal standard of care. In this episode, File on 4 asks whether the NHS can be sure its patients are safe in private hospitals. Photo credit - Getty Creative Images.Reporter: Alistair Jackson Producer: Kate West Editor: Gail Champion