Community hall.

Clock strikes 2024.

Jelicia

Will you all like please rise

Will you all like please rise

The 4

Will you all like please rise

For the judge

Jelicia

We are here today for like the erm

The Children’s Inquiry

Angelica

The erm grown-ups in power called a review

Inspecting the system for like us kids in care

Amber

They didn’t get to the root of the truth

Frank

They didn’t listen to the voice of youth

Angelica

Today erm, we make space for the feelings of

All

Please rise

Amber

The children themselves

Jelicia

The grown-ups’ inquiry didn’t find the truth

Frank

They pushed it aside

Jelicia

So let’s call an inquiry

All

The Children’s Inquiry

Jelicia

To find out the truth

They swear in.

Angelica

Angelica

Amber

Amber

Frank

Frank

Jelicia

Jelicia

We do solemnly swear

Frank

That the evidence we give

Angelica

Shall be the truth

Amber

The whole truth

The 4

And nothing but the truth

Jelicia

Will you all like please

Frank

Rise

Amber

Rise

Angelica

Rise

All

Rise

Jelicia

Will you all like please

Frank

Rise

Amber

Rise

Angelica

Rise

Jelicia

Rise

All

For the judge

Jelicia

How we judge the care system today

The 4

Please rise

Frank

Is how like history will judge us tomorrow

Angelica

The truth will not be defeated

Amber

You may all like be seated

Corridor

Clock strikes 1665.

Pepys Lord have mercy upon us. I did on Drury Lane see two houses with babes and sucklings, marked with a red cross upon the door. Plague is come into the City.

Clock strikes 1760.

Toynbee The world is on the eve of an industrial revolution.

Watt Let steam be a powerful moral lever in forwarding the great cause of civilisation.

Edison Let there be light.

Clock strikes 1881.

Waugh It is impossible to mention the defilements and injuries done to orphans in this day and age. Whilst we have a Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, can us reformers not do something to prevent cruelty to children?

Workhouse.

Master The workhouse will prove a nursery of industry to bring orphans, deserted children, bastards, children of idiots, children of paupers, children of felons to become useful members of the Commonwealth.

Clock strikes 1857.

All

Angelica

Angelica

Anyone can give you like clothes, food and water

To me, that’s not love, yeah, that’s just robotic

All

Amber

Amber

Mum was stuck in the olden days, erm, it’s funny

But her and Dad, erm, I know that they loved me

Angelica

Me, Amber and

Amber & Angelica

Our older sister Kayleigh

Angelica

The three of us got spoiled with like toy-type things and stuff

Amber

Love’s not a verb, an adjective, or noun

Love’s not a set of rules, written down

Amber & Angelica

From the workhouse till now our start in life is luck

The midwife said she’d done it but the cord was never cut

Sarah Me and my brother were sent to the workhouse, the same as many children. Taken in the dead of night, cartloads of us at a time.

All

Frank

Frank

Dad died in the white house

Not Donald Trump the white house

My first house was white

All

I’ll never forget

Frank

This like one time we had

Nappy bags we like chucked in the air to see

Who could keep them up the longest

For me that’s my favourite memory of him

From the workhouse till now our start in life is luck

The midwife said she’d done it but the cord was never cut

Will We usually started work at five in the morning. Living like beasts, we were slowly being killed.

All

Jelicia

Jelicia

My headteacher at school right,

Every day she’d pull me out of class

Check if I’d been beaten

Check for bruises

Check check check

Every day she’d check and say,

‘No bruises still?’

I’d be like, ‘No erm, same as yesterday

And the day before and the day before that’

I don’t have any now,

I like never ever will

I never ever will

From the workhouse till now our start in life is luck

The midwife said she’d done it but the cord was never cut

Angelica

We had like

Amber & Angelica

No warning

Angelica

We didn’t get like

Amber & Angelica

Any warning

Angelica

Out the blue

Amber & Angelica

With no warning

No warning

Frank

We like moved out the white house

Not Donald Trump the white house

My first house was white

We moved down the road like, twenty doors down

Jelicia

My headteacher at school right

Every day she’d pull me out of class

So my mum took me and my sister Jericho

Out of primary school

Angelica

We were always like a normal family

I didn’t put two and two together

Amber &...