Possible sources of reliable information
When researching your topic, choose your sources of information carefully. Try to avoid opinion or comments picked from social media. Use verified research, reports, news stories published by regulated media organisations (such as the BBC, the Press Association), official statistics. Include links to these articles or reports so that your reader can see where the information or quotes in your story has come from.
Personal stories/anecdotes
It's fine to use your own first hand account, or accounts you gather by speaking to friends, family, teachers and people you already know. Personal accounts from strangers you don’t know online and can’t verify are a little tricky and should be avoided.
Online information/social media
- Does this information have an author?
- Is it connected to a legitimate news agency?
- Has it been shared without a source?
- Is this the full story, an edited version or a personal opinion? How does that influence the report's accuracy and intentions?
Below are some possible sources of reliable information. Remember you won’t have time to check everything, but there may be one or two sources that provide you with useful background and context you need for your writing.
Official sources of information
- Charities/Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) Check websites for recent reports, statistics, campaigns, local events.
- Hansard - https://hansard.parliament.uk This website is a record of every parliamentary debate and all business discussed by MPs, spoken and written.
- They Work for You: https://www.theyworkforyou.com You can find out what your MP does in parliament, what subjects they ask questions about, how many times they attend parliament, how they vote in parliamentary debates.
- Parliamentary select committee reports and investigations: excellent source of information on subjects such as homelessness, mental health and inequality. Often their reports include evidence from charities and NGOs and people with lived experience of an issue. https://www.parliament.uk/about/how/committees/select/
- National news organisations: eg. the BBC’s news and in-depth features section. Every news organisation is bias in some way, but most legacy print media and all British broadcasters are subject to rules and professional standards, which means they risk punishment if they fall short.
- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/newsbeat
- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/politics
- Use Google news to find out what the latest national stories are on your subject: eg. recent stats on homelessness, social mobility or LGBTQ+ discrimination
- If you prefer watching to reading, the Victoria Derbyshire show often runs good investigations into social issues: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05qqk5c
- Local and independent media organisations: often a useful source of social justice reporting, especially on issues missed by mainstream media. Try:
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The Bureau Local https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/localLink opens in a new window
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The Ferret https://theferret.scot/Link opens in a new window
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The Bristol Cable https://thebristolcable.org/Link opens in a new window
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Scottish Beacon https://www.scottishbeacon.com/Link opens in a new window
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Liberty Investigates https://libertyinvestigates.org.uk/Link opens in a new window
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Unearthed, in-house investigations by Greenpeace https://unearthed.greenpeace.org/Link opens in a new window
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Lighthouse Reports https://www.lighthousereports.com/Link opens in a new window
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- The Office for National Statistics: https://www.ons.gov.uk Useful for looking at social attitudes, large surveys on public opinion, employment figures, etc.
- National Audit Office: https://www.nao.org.uk Sort of like the government’s accountant. They publish research on government spending and projects.
- British Social Attitudes: https://www.bsa.natcen.ac.uk
- What do they know: a searchable website of nearly every Freedom of Information request made to public authorities: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com Freedom of information requests are a useful way to obtain information from public sector authorities like hospitals, local councils, government departments.
- Local council: every council publishes details of decision-making and policy for how they tackle things like homelessness or violence against women, for example. https://democracy.islington.gov.uk/ieDocHome.aspx?bcr=1
- Coventry City Council meetings: https://edemocracy.coventry.gov.uk/mgCalendarMonthView.aspx?GL=1
- Warwickshire Council meetings: https://democracy.warwickshire.gov.uk/mgCalendarMonthView.aspx?GL=1&bcr=1
- Birmingham City Council meetings: https://birmingham.cmis.uk.com/birmingham/Meetings.aspx
- Attending council meetings: https://democracy.islington.gov.uk/mgCalendarMonthView.aspx For example, if you attend a budget meeting you might find out how much the council spends on things like homelessness, social care, education, etc.
- Courts: members of the public can attend courts, some sessions will have restrictions in place, you can find out by asking the court admin staff on duty.
- e.g. Clerkenwell and Shoreditch County Court: cases heard include social housing evictions and domestic violence cases. https://courttribunalfinder.service.gov.uk/courts/clerkenwell-and-shoreditch-county-court-and-family-court
- Tribunals: cases include social security, so things like benefit sanction appeals and disability living allowance challenges https://courttribunalfinder.service.gov.uk/courts/taylor-house-hearing-centre At Taylor house immigration cases are heard.
- The Supreme court: the highest court for England and Wales, where significant cases are determined and have the potential to change policy. The court sits in London, but all cases are shown live online. Can be boring and lots of procedure but occasionally there are cases that make national news, like the challenges around Brexit for example. https://www.supremecourt.uk
- Books! Your local and school libraries
Topic specific sources
If you’re stuck, here are some subject specific help to get you started. You don’t need to read everything, these are just ideas and examples to get you going and inspire your own search for information. Remember at the heart of your work is a story you want to tell, these resources are just to back up your work.
Mental Health
- Interesting magazine article on young men and mental health with some useful stats and references: https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/real-life/young-men-mental-health/
- https://www.theguardian.com/society/youngpeople+mental-health
- Well known mental health charity focused on young people https://youngminds.org.uk
- Legal charity working on campaigns for young people https://justforkidslaw.org
- News story on suicide rates among young people (10-24): https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/sep/03/suicides-rates-in-uk-increase-to-highest-level-since-2002
- More stats/reports/campaigns: https://www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk
- Spending on mental health in England: https://fullfact.org/health/mental-health-spending-england
Privatisation in the NHS
There are quite a few campaigns. Some will have published research, firsthand accounts, articles on this subject. Always quote the campaign organisation if you use any of their material.
- https://keepournhspublic.com
- https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/ournhs/
- Activists/campaigners on immigration and the NHS: http://www.docsnotcops.co.uk
- Trade union that looks after health workers: https://www.unison.org.uk/at-work/health-care/
- Campaign/research group: https://www.nhsforsale.info/in-the-press/about-the-nhs-support-federation/
- Hospital cleaners go on strike over outscoring: https://www.uvwunion.org.uk/news/2019/11/uvw-indefinitestrike-longest-strike-in-nhs-history
Windrush
- Clear overview from Hackney council: https://hackney.gov.uk/windrush
- All the Windrush stories published the guardian who led the campaign: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/windrush-scandal
- The government recently published a report on lessons learned from the Windrush scandal: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/windrush-lessons-learned-review
- Recent news stories criticising the report: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/windrush-racism-home-office-caribbean-deportation-generation-scandal-a9348776.html
- Campaigners/charities
- Books
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Women for Refugee Women have launched a recent campaign around women and destitution: news clips here: https://www.refugeewomen.co.uk/news/media/
Street Harassment
- Everyday sexism campaign https://everydaysexism.com
- Laura Bates TED talk on the everyday sexism project: https://www.ted.com/talks/laura_bates_everyday_sexism?language=en
- Hollaback campaign - global action documenting harassment: https://www.ihollaback.org
- This was their kick-starter from 2010: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hollaback/hollaback
- Charity: Plan International has a campaign on street harassment: https://plan-uk.org/act-for-girls/street-harassment
- https://www.actionaid.org.uk/campaign/campaigning-works/ending-street-harassment-the-safe-cities-for-women-campaign
- News story: UK makes sexual harassment a hate crime: https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/05/19/britain-is-making-sexual-harassment-a-hate-crime/
Social pressures on women
- Victoria Derbyshire show feature on cosmetic procedures, useful insights from different woman: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0778rq2
- Covers different social issues, entirely produced by women of colour: https://gal-dem.com
- Latin American Women’s Rights organisation - lots of campaigns and reports: http://www.lawrs.org.uk
- Book by American author on highly sexualised culture in US and impact on women: https://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Ariel-Levy/Female-Chauvinist-Pigs--Woman-and-the-Rise-of-Raunch-Culture/6086260
- Stubborn Archivist by Yara Rodrigues Fowler: on identity, dealing with different cultures: https://lithub.com/stubborn-archivist/
Prisons/prison reform
Charities, NGOs publishing reports and stats on prison populations and conditions:
- http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk
- https://howardleague.org
- https://article39.org.uk/endchildimprisonment/ (focused on children in prisons)
- https://article39.org.uk/endchildimprisonment/
- Interview with prominent American prison abolitionist and activist Angela Davis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aB-LsYyMFWI
- Empty Cages: UK group that campaigns and publishes work on prison abolition: http://www.prisonabolition.org
- Podcast: https://cape-campaign.org/podcast/
Impact of austerity on young people
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Charity report from 2012 (you might find more up to date work): https://www.jrf.org.uk/austerity-uk
- Austerity and child poverty report
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Statistics on funding for young people’s services: https://fullfact.org/economy/spending-services-young-people-england-has-fallen-2010/
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News story on cuts to youth services: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/jan/20/youth-services-suffer-70-funding-cut-in-less-than-a-decade
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BBC does a fact check on links between cuts to youth services and increase in crime: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-43668167
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More research on London youth club closures: https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/mar/22/number-of-london-youth-clubs-nearly-halved-since-2011-riots-report-finds
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Campaign group looks at Wales and spending on mental health for young people: https://neu.org.uk/press-releases/most-vulnerable-youngsters-serious-risk-due-austerity
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Academics say UK doesn’t spend enough on health of young people: http://theconversation.com/the-uk-doesnt-spend-enough-on-the-mental-health-of-young-people-we-found-out-why-124315
Identity and nationalism
- Tell Mama - organisation that gathers information on hate crime: http://theconversation.com/the-uk-doesnt-spend-enough-on-the-mental-health-of-young-people-we-found-out-why-124315
- Opinion piece on Brexit, hate crime, prejudice: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/brexit-racial-and-religious-hate-crimes-and-homo-bi-and-transphobia-why-they-are-all-l/
- Book review of “Angry White People” about Britain First by Hsiao-Hung Pai: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2016/03/02/book-review-angry-white-people-coming-face-to-face-with-the-british-far-right-by-hsiao-hung-pai/
- Journalist comments on far right trend in Europe: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/04/opinion/far-right-europe-austria.htmlVeiled Threats: representation of Muslim women in public discourse: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2016/10/24/book-review-veiled-threats-representing-the-muslim-woman-in-public-policy-discourses-by-naaz-rashid/
Class inequality/discrimination/ labour rights/single mothers
- Trade Union report on racism and sexism experienced at work by ethnic minority women in UK https://www.tuc.org.uk/blogs/racism-and-sexism-are-double-whammy-bme-women
- Useful resources for union campaigns: https://www.tuc.org.uk/campaigns
- Hospital cleaners on strike: https://www.uvwunion.org.uk/news/2019/11/uvw-indefinitestrike-longest-strike-in-nhs-history
- Equality charity, useful resource, runs many campaigns around women’s rights: https://www.fawcettsociety.org.uk
- Book review of Lynsey Hanley’s book on council estates https://www.theguardian.com/books/2007/jan/06/communities.housing
- Owen Jones talking about Chavs, his work on the demonisation of the working class:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gb8wH_XlLfA
- Fawcett Society campaign on single mothers: https://www.fawcettsociety.org.uk/single-mothers-singled-out
LGBTQI+ homelessness
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Charity - resources, campaigns: https://www.akt.org.uk
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Report on the rates of homelessness among young people: https://www.theproudtrust.org/resources/research-and-guidance-by-other-organisations/lgbt-youth-homelessness-a-uk-national-scoping-of-cause-prevalence-response-and-outcome/
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Report on domestic violence/homelessness: https://ncadv.org/blog/posts/domestic-violence-and-the-lgbtq-community
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Big Issue editorial on homelessness among young LGBTQI+ people: https://www.bigissue.com/latest/many-young-lgbt-people-britain-homeless/
Homelessness
- https://www.thepavement.org.uk
- https://england.shelter.org.uk/support_us/campaigns
- Discussion in parliament: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2019-10-01/debates/19100142000007/HomelessnessAndRoughSleeping
- Year long investigation into homelessness deaths: https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2018-04-23/dying-homeless
Autism
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is a short funny book about a clever teenager navigating family drama. It is never mentioned that Christopher is autistic or on the autism spectrum, just that he has “Behavioural Problems”, but at the time of publication in 2003 he was widely considered to have Asperger’s syndrome. There has been much criticism of the book in recent years (author sort of responds here). There are massively contrasting views from people who read the book - some autistic people and their families loves it, others hate it and consider it ableist - a positive review and a negative review
- The National Autistic Society published their list of Dos and Don’ts for journalists and writers - you might find it useful to have a read. For example, ask people about their preferences and own experience, and unless they tell you otherwise, avoid the term "person with autism" and instead say "autistic person" https://www.autism.org.uk/what-we-do/help-and-support/how-to-talk-about-autism
- Autistic writer Cassie Joseph on her dos and don’ts. She says: “Writing autistic characters may seem like a daunting task; but, ultimately, you just want to approach it the way you would approach writing any other character: with empathy, kindness, and a commitment to writing them well. If you do that, then you’ll get pretty far.”
- Here is a long excerpt from Songs of the Gorilla Nation: My Journey Through Autism. A first person account of obtaining a diagnosis as an adult and how having undiagnosed autism impacted her. https://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/21/books/chapters/songs-of-the-gorilla-nation.html
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A writer on the disability in kid lit website (focuses on portrayals of disability in young people’s literature) recommends A Real Boy, about an 11 year old boy with autism.
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“After reading many disappointing portrayals of autism, I truly wanted The Real Boy to be good. To my ever-lasting relief, it is. It’s now my go-to recommendation when people ask me for books with autistic protagonists.”
- Full review here: https://disabilityinkidlit.com/2015/04/13/review-the-real-boy-by-anne-ursu/
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I have autism and the lack of authentic voices in books angers me - Sara Barrett discusses the portrayal of autistic characters, and praises Corrine Duyvis' On The Edge of Gone
- And the most beautiful thing about the book is that Denise is a normal girl. She just has ticks. She just has a few things that set her apart. Because in the end, we are normal. We may seem different from everyone else, but we aren’t so different really. We feel a lot of the same things as everyone else. We feel scared. We feel lonely. We feel afraid. And we need more writers like Corinne Duyvis to give us books we can relate to for once.
- 'You don't look autistic': on stereotypes and late diagnosis - This Lacuna writer combines their personal story with research.
- Remember, your piece is a your own personal response to "what makes you angry". This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t attempt writing on autism for Writing Wrongs! Or that it has to be a negative or dark writing project. It could be that you’ve noticed that your unique experience of autism is something you rarely see discussed or portrayed, and that’s what you want to focus on, so keep it original.
Further food for thought:
Interview with Mark Haddon: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2004/feb/02/fiction.markhaddon
Excerpt:
Question: How much research did you do before writing The Curious Incident..., and was it difficult?
Mark Haddon: I did no specific research at all. Many years ago I worked with people with a variety of disabilities (all of them more seriously disabled than Christopher), so I feel comfortable writing about the subject and have what you might call an interested layperson's knowledge of autism and Asperger's. Beyond that I reasoned (rightly, I think, in retrospect) that the novel would work best if I simply tried to make Christopher seem like a believable human being, rather than trying to make him medically 'correct'. In short, if I treated him like any other character and didn't make him a special case