Darren grew up living in poverty. He suffered domestic abuse, his mother died young, leaving her school-age children behind her, and Darren fell into a trap of drug and alcohol addiction.

But he managed to pull himself out of this. Now, Darren is a successful columnist and advocate for change, representing many NGOs and organisations in the Third Sector. 

The irony lies in that, in order to gain success and break away from his ‘deprived’ community, he has had to exploit his own difficult experiences. ‘I find it difficult pitching articles that don’t contain at least some personal blood and guts,’ he says. His social mobility relies on the very re-telling of the story of bis impoverished upbringing. 

In this sharp and thought-provoking book, Darren explains how the organisations that seek to empower him often feel him leaving helpless and frustrated. It is a thorough and witty exploration of the class system and all of the mechanisms that work to support the dichotomy between rich and poor in today’s Great Britain. 

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