AN ACTIVIST from Oldham is calling for more residents to share their stories of poverty and difficulties accessing the borough’s services.

Simon Carrigan, who is one of the grassroots commissioners for the Poverty Truth Commission and describes himself as a ‘micro activist' and performer, is urging more residents to take part in the commission which aims to create a clear manifesto on how to respond to poverty across Oldham.

Simon, 40, who grew up in Clarksfield and goes by his stage name Dole Boi, said: “We need people to know that the Poverty Truth Commission is here.

“I would love to hear more people’s stories about their experiences of using services and take those stories to councillors.

“The commission brings together staff at the council, like the head of education and housing, with people who have lived experience of poverty to discuss what would work to help the people of Oldham.

“It means that people who lead the services actually hear from people who use them and have been through hardship or have had a mental health crisis.

“It’s alright if you’re just driving through a bad area to get to your council office but different if you’re living in it.”

The father-of-two added: “People are worried it’s a tick boxing exercise and nothing is going to get implemented.

"We need to put so much pressure on the council that they follow through with what they say and implement what we’re asking for”.

Simon, alongside his fellow commissioners, wants to see a more welcoming point of contact for people in crisis and believes community centres that share one database with every service available are the way forward.

“Signposting is a big issue. The services are there but people don’t know how to access them and the services themselves aren’t communicating. We need more of an all-encompassing approach,” he said.

Simon himself struggled to access mental health and drug rehabilitation services.

He was diagnosed with ADHD at eight years old but did not learn of his diagnosis until he was 36 and turned to self-medication to combat his symptoms.

Discussing his ADHD, Simon said: “It was never discussed when I was a kid. I started self-medicating from 11 and took ecstasy and cannabis.

“I then went bankrupt at 24 and my mum had to pay off my drug debts. That’s when I cleaned my life up.

“I went through NHS services but was told I was too loud or emotional because of my ADHD for therapy sessions. It was the smaller charities and organisations that helped me.

“I have noticed some ADHD tendencies in my children, and I don’t want them to face the walls and barriers that I did.”

A survey is currently running to develop as full a picture as possible of poverty in Oldham.

Answers to the survey questions will be collected anonymously by the project to help guide the project’s work.

For more information on the project visit www.povertytruthnetwork.org.