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Following her award-winning 2019 series Ladder to Nowhere, Liza Ward continues the dramatic story of how she escaped from a life of poverty, social chaos and gang crime.

Liza became a mum at 13, spent time in the care system, and was forced to cut ties with her alcoholic mother. She was later drawn into Manchester’s gang culture, had a relationship with a gun dealer and almost became a casualty of gang crime herself. Through it all, she fought to get herself the education that she knew would offer her the possibility of a better life.

Liza escaped that world, but many people she knew did not. Their lives were damaged beyond repair. They became lost souls who gave up on society, and eventually on themselves. In this series, Liza revisits that time, to see if she can pinpoint the reasons why she was able to break free while others remained trapped. In five themed episodes, each addressing a major social issue of our time, she recalls the turning points in her life. Liza talks to family and friends whose love and support helped her through, and reconnects with teachers and employers who encouraged and mentored her. Through their honest and often uplifting testimony we get a vivid portrait of a family, a city, and a working-class culture in decline.

In the first episode, Liza recalls her experience in the care system. With her mother unable to care for her, she spent time in children’s homes and foster care. When she became a mum herself, the challenges became even greater. Liza reunites with an old care-home friend, shares war stories with poet, care-leaver and campaigner Lemn Sissay, and seeks answers from the man in charge of a new review of our children’s care system.

Producer: Hugh Costello
A Whistledown production for Ö÷²¥´óÐã Radio 4