Gemma Thorpe

Photographer

In Between Days

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Biography: I am a freelance Photographer specialising in Documentary/Reportage. My interests include youth and social issues, migration and exclusion. I keep a keen eye on current affairs in China having lived there for two years, and can speak... MORE

Jordan, on the train to London....forget about being homelessâ€™.

Jordan, on the train to London. Young people at the Roundabout hostel in Sheffield had won a funding bid and chose to visit London â€˜to forget about being homelessâ€™.

Jordan's tattoo in memoria...rt him until he is at least 21.

Jordan's tattoo in memoriam of his Nan, the only family member he talks about with fondness. Jordan comes from an abusive home and has complex needs. He has recently had a care package put together by social services to support him until he is at least 21.

Jordan & friends, cafe in P...ple from the Roundabout hostel.

Jordan & friends, cafe in Paddington, London, during a visit from Sheffield with staff and young people from the Roundabout hostel.

Lewis during a football tournam...laying for the Roundabout team.

Lewis during a football tournament arranged between youth services in Sheffield. Heâ€™d been playing for the Roundabout team.

Lauren takes down the number of...ally in council owned property.

Lauren takes down the number of her new key worker in the shared house she had just moved to, supported by Roundabout homeless youth charity in Sheffield. The house is a stepping-stone towards finding a tenancy, usually in council owned property.

Lauren leaving the Roundabout h...o move to shared accommodation.

Lauren leaving the Roundabout hostel to move to shared accommodation.

Stereo on the floor of what wil...cil housing block in Sheffield.

Stereo on the floor of what will be the living room and bedroom of Lauren's flat, her first tenancy in a council housing block in Sheffield.

Lauren, seen through the window...g to build an independent life.

Lauren, seen through the window of her flat in a council housing block in Sheffield, where she is beginning to build an independent life.

Jordan, Ash during a Prince...cation, employment or training.

Jordan, Ash during a Prince's Trust training week at Sheffield Wednesday Football Club. The Prince's Trust supports young people who are not in education, employment or training.

A room in the Roundabout hostel...or homeless youth in Sheffield.

A room in the Roundabout hostel, emergency shelter for homeless youth in Sheffield.

In the courtyard of the Roundab...or homeless youth in Sheffield.

In the courtyard of the Roundabout hostel for homeless youth in Sheffield.

Jordan looks up as an aeroplane...inds it hard to maintain focus.

Jordan looks up as an aeroplane flies past on the way back to the Roundabout hostel from the local shop in Sheffield. Jordan states he is much more interested in getting decent qualifications than earning a lot of money, yet finds it hard to maintain focus.

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Public Story

In Between Days

Updated Sep 2011

Topics Documentary, Education, England, Homelessness, Photography, Photojournalism, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, UK, Youth

This series aims to highlight the state of limbo experienced by homeless and vulnerably housed young people in the UK. I wanted to try and portray this feeling of in-betweenness that I realised the young people were experiencing; they are in- between youth and adulthood, dependence and responsibility, freedom and constraint. I spent several months trying to look beyond the negative stereotypes of UK youth and show the quieter moments, the emotional reality of being on the margins of UK society.

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