NOTORIOUS Channel 4 show Benefits Street - which sparked outrage when broadcast - has targeted residents in Birkenhead North for a potential second series.

Householders in Fairbrook Drive received letters from programmemakers Love Productions inviting them to take part in the reality show.

Bidston councillor Jim Crabtree and Frank Harrison, former chairman of Birkenhead North Development Committee, said they will be advising residents to think twice before agreeing to be filmed.

Councillor Crabtree told the Globe: “We’ve been expecting this to happen, so we're not really shocked by it.


“Hopefully, people will have seen the first series and will not take part in the second.

"I’ve spoken to residents and they are not happy, fearing it will show the area in a very negative light.

“There’s hardly anyone on benefits around here. In fact a lot of people work, so it is not a welcome invitation.”

Mr Harrison, who was chairman of the community committee for five years, said: “There have been a lot of changes in the area, so the last thing we need is Benefits Street.”

In a letter to families living in Fairbrook Drive, Love Productions wrote: “We are looking for a really strong community where neighbours look out for one another, have really interesting stories to share and offer their own perspectives of living on benefits.


“We would love the opportunity to speak to everyone on the street whether you are claiming benefits or not.”

The Globe spoke to Fairbrook Drive residents, who said they would not be taking part in the programme.

One, who asked not to be named, said: “I’m not happy that we’ve been chosen and I'm opting out.

“The programme just exploits people and can leave you wide open to criticism, as happened with the first series. I don’t want to air my dirty laundry in public.“

Love Productions declined our invitation to comment.

Who Benefits?

The five-part reality series aired in January and documented the lives of residents of James Turner Street in a Birmingham suburb.

It showed benefit claimants committing crimes, including a demonstration of how to shoplift, and portrayed people dependent on welfare as lacking motivation to seek employment

The programme was extremely controversial, with police, Channel 4 and Ofcom receiving hundreds of complaints

Love Productions is a UK-based company behind major TV hits such as The Mary Berry Story and The Great British Bake Off - which made a star of Wallasey-born baker Paul Hollywood.

It also produced Britain's Youngest Grannies, Rock Stars' Wives, Young Mums' Mansion and Underage and Having Sex.

I'm hearing that a lot of residents of told them to DO ONE. Hope so...

I think the tv company would of been to a few areas of the UK,

I say scrap the whole show

Hopefully the whole of Britain will swerve them..........

Big fat Lie!

Anyway,

What i would like to know is how they got the information that they are on benefits?

Is the benefit centre not covered by the data protection act?

The Woodward estate was also approached....

Good point that Ste. I think I read somewhere that the CEO of Love Productions is a friend of Cameron, so who knows....

[youtube]qxsM9WYbMzQ[/youtube] Tee street in the 80's

ste when anyone signs up for the new Universal Jobmatch they are told by the job centre to click the option that lets the dole see what jobs you're going for if anyone does this it's open to 3 party firms to read like the tick box on some websites, the thing is that you've got to tick this for the dole to see what jobs you've gone for, so in away they are selling everyone info

http://www.wirralglobe.co.uk/news/1..._national_average___says_report/?ref=rss

I haven't watched 'Benefit Street', so maybe my comments could be a bit incorrect or not valid. So I apologise if they are.
Yet, one point is that data collected lists Birkenhead as number 20th in the tables throughout the country for child poverty. All these masses of data collected would be of interest to any research team looking to make a programme. Fairbrook Drive may well be pinpointed in such tables.
The council most certainly would not want their 'patch' to be under scrutiny from a nationwide audience and it could do so much damage to the already suffering Birkenhead. It must be asked 'why' that Jim Crabtree and Frank Harrison have been expecting this. Obviously they are part of the problem. Nil points for not doing enough.
In addition the link at the bottom gives a really bad impression of Birkenhead , which has been made up from comments of possibly many locals who are listed at the bottom of the article. Pretty harsh, in my opinions. This came up on the first page, when doing google search for 'Birkenhead Poverty'
It might be advantageous to ask the television company, how much they are prepared to pay the residents of Fairbrook Drive, to contribute in such a major way to their making of a programme. I wouldn't settle for anything less than a few grand per household (tax free and not to be set against any benefits). If they don't oblige, then you can tell them to stuff it! They shouldn't even contemplate making programmes for their financial gain by using people from the disadvantaged sector, whoever they are, if they are not on the payroll.
Good morning campers !

http://www.knowhere.co.uk/Birkenhead/Merseyside/Northern-England/info/worstthings

granny the benefit recievers cannot accept any money or they will be kicked of the benefit system.

i dont think the program pay anyway.

As for the link you put up that has been up for years.

re the River Steets youtube vid
I was told Mickey who had the re-marriage to his wife had his wedding and the do afterwards all paid for by the tv company
Quite a while ago, so the benefit system then mightn't have been so strict as now

As I understood, anyone on benefits can have up to £6000 savings before benefits are affected. Might have changed now.

The programme should pay Ste, they pay for many other things when making programmes, they have to pay for the privilege of filming the Mersey from the landing stages for a start. They have to pay for filming inside buildings and so much more. Maybe they pay the council for filming the street ? All pretty controlled really, to cover any incident that could arise.

So far as the link then, sorry as I haven't seen it before as not normally searching for poverty in Birkenhead.

sorry granny i meant they are all old comments.

there are no new comments on there, it should be removed.

seems there is no admin to the site.

I cant see why they pin point Birkenhead, there are streets all over the county all claiming, if the government didn't make it so easy for all these people to claim benefits. I do understand there are there who needs them, but there are people who spoil it for others who do need help, unfortunately they are all tarred with the same brush

That's what happened to Lizzie Bardsley after she got fame after Wife Swap.

(apparently)
Lizzie Bardsley and her husband were claiming £37,500 a year in benefits and as she failed to inform the DWP of her earnings from the TV programme, was accused of being overpaid
£4879.87 !!!

One of the residents on the radio was saying that the community is strong and it it would show community spirit, honest folk type of thing.

Guess some are looking to sign up then.

http://www.wirralglobe.co.uk/news/1...urce=twitterfeed&utm_medium=facebook

barstard

Make you sick this.No wonder they didnt declare it.

you tell em snow

I friggin will.You dont sound too happy ither, haha.

http://www.wirralglobe.co.uk/news/1...fits_Street_in_Birkenhead_North/?ref=mry

Good on them (the residents), nothing good would have come from it.

I doubt any Street in Britain would welcome Loveproductions after depiction' of 'poor'people' on the Benefit Street progrmme....

There won't be a second series.