File on 4 Investigates

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At Risk? Children in Residential Care May 21, 2019

Show notes

Children's homes offer sanctuary to young people whose childhoods have been disrupted by abuse, neglect or family breakdown.

More than 2,200 homes are spread across the country providing young people the opportunity to get their lives back on track.

For many, a residential home provides much needed stability and care when there had previously been none, and a vital opportunity to experience a settled childhood.

But with pressure on the children's social care sector mounting, File on 4 investigates whether some homes are failing to give young people the second chance they need. New research suggests concerning levels of police involvement in the lives of care home residents, and growing concerns about children absconding. Where do they go, and who's looking out for them?

As young people in residential care are particularly susceptible to grooming for sexual abuse and county lines activity, how can care home staff prevent predators from gaining access to them – and when a child is intent on absconding, what options do staff have to keep them safe?

Reporter: Paul Connolly Producer: Ben Robinson Editor: Gail Champion

Photo credit: Sam Thomas\Getty

Opioids: A Painful Prescription? May 14, 2019

Show notes

Opioids like morphine, tramadol and fentanyl are super-strength painkillers. They’re often prescribed by doctors for chronic pain, despite little evidence to say they’re helpful in it's treatment. Now, there is a growing recognition that over-prescribing of these drugs has led to addiction, harm or even death. Reporter Anna Cavell examines what's led to the increase in the prescribing of these powerful painkillers in the absence of good evidence to say they work in the long term – and investigates whether cynical marketing tactics by pharmaceutical companies could have helped to fuel the UK market. As a government review into the growing problem of prescription drug addiction in England hits delays, we hear from those caught up in opioid fuelled addiction, as well as those tasked with helping people hooked on painkillers to come off them safely.

Producer: Alys Harte Editor: Gail Champion

Photo credit: Getty images

The Crossing Mar 19, 2019

Show notes

In the autumn of 2016 the authorities in France closed down a large migrant camp in Calais known as The Jungle.

At its height more than 9,000 people from around the world lived in the camp while attempting to make it across to the UK, often hiding in the back of lorries or packed into small boats. It was hoped the camp's closure would stem the number of people risking their lives to try to get to Britain. But more than two years on has it worked?

Over Christmas the Home Secretary Sajid Javid declared the number of migrants attempting to cross in boats a 'major incident' and since then more than 100 people have been picked up in 2019.

File in 4 investigates the British gangs making thousands of pounds and risking migrants' lives smuggling them across the Channel and reports on the attempts to break up their networks.

In France, concerted efforts have been made to stop another large camp being established in Calais and File on 4 asks whether the policy is succeeding in deterring migrants from travelling to the French coast, or whether it is simply driving people to take ever greater risks?

Reporter: Paul Kenyon Producer: Ben Robinson Editor: Gail Champion

Photo credit: AFP/Getty Images.

The Crypto Factor – The Winners and Losers in Virtual Investment Mar 12, 2019

Show notes

You can't take money with you when you die.... or can you?

In this episode of File on 4 the stranger than fiction story that's the latest cryptocurrency scandal to leave tens of thousands of people out of pocket. The news about QuadrigaCX broke almost to the day that crypto-currencies celebrated a decade in existence. On this anniversary, we investigate the current state of the market and uncover how these sometimes tragic events have unfolded both here in the UK and across the world. With the UK government and other countries now considering attempting to regulate the market, we ask if these scandals could have been prevented and could now be avoided in the future.

Reporter: Paul Connolly Producer: Kate West Editor: Gail Champion

Photo credit: Reuters.

Winging It? Mar 05, 2019

Show notes

The UK's Military Flying Training System trains pilots on aircraft from fighter planes to navy helicopters. It takes years for trainees to get their wings. But delays in the system, mean many pilots and crew are 'on hold', waiting months, often years to take to the skies.

File on 4 investigates the reasons for the hold ups. What's the impact of these delays on the public purse and on our military capability?

The government's promising a beefed up armed forces, including two new Typhoon squadrons and F35 jets. Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson says the UK needs to be ready to use 'hard power' or risk being seen as little more than a paper tiger. But with the MoD's flying training still not at full throttle, will a lack of pilots undermine our military capability?

Reporter: Jane Deith Producer: Mick Tucker Editor: Gail Champion

Photo Credit: Christopher Furlong\Getty

The Compensation Catch Feb 26, 2019

Show notes

If you’ve been the victim of sexual or violent crimes then you can apply for compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA).

During 2017-2018, the government funded scheme paid out over £154 million to help people rebuild their lives.

But for some victims it’s not straightforward.

Solicitors and charities argue that inflexible rules exclude too many people from successfully making a claim, including those who apply more than two years after a crime happens, and those who have an unspent conviction of any kind.

Even where people are eligible for compensation, are they always getting what they deserve?

Applications to the CICA can be made without the help of a solicitor but File on 4 investigates whether victims without legal advice may be being deprived of their entitlement.

Serious questions are also being asked about the effect on vulnerable applicants when the CICA puts an award into a legal trust and dictates exactly how the money will be spent.

A government review into the scheme is currently underway and is set to report back later this year but in the meantime, is it fair to those whose lives have been affected by abuse or violence – or is it penny-pinching to save public money?

Presenter: Lesley Curwen Producer: Emma Forde Editor: Gail Champion

Photo credit: Education Images\Getty

Swipe Right for Crime Feb 20, 2019

Show notes

Police across the globe have successfully infiltrated leading dark web criminal markets. The result is that the trade in illegal drugs, stolen credit cards and indecent images of children is shifting to encrypted mobile phone apps. The crooks believe their business is protected by 'uncrackable' technology. So what should Government and the telecoms companies do to ensure criminals do not exploit secure encryption?

Reporter: Geoff White Producer: David Lewis Editor: Gail Champion

(Photo credit: NurPhoto\Getty Images)

No Place Like Home - The Inside Story of Supported Living Feb 12, 2019

Show notes

Transforming Care is the NHS policy which should be moving learning disabled people out of hospital units and into their own supported homes.

But File on 4 asks if the growth in the supported living sector is really providing the happy, safe and secure homes it was meant to.

While the NHS has struggled to get its money into the hands of the councils who provide supported living, councils have gone their own way; commissioning services from care companies and homes from private landlords to give learning disabled adults their own front doors and their own independence.

But with little in the way of inspection and councils under budgetary constraints, File on 4 asks if the push to build supported living risks repeating the mistakes of the past, with some of the country's most vulnerable people housed in institutions far from public scrutiny.

Reporter: Claire Bolderson Producer: Rob Cave Editor: Gail Champion

(Photo Credit: MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)

Can we Fix it? The Inside Story of Match Fixing in Tennis Feb 05, 2019

Show notes

Last month, law enforcement officials in Spain said they had broken up a major match fixing ring in tennis. The Guardia Civil said 28 players competing at the lower levels of tennis were implicated. It's alleged that a group of Armenians had bribed the players to fix matches.

File on 4 reveals the inside story of how players and betting gangs are seeking to corrupt the lower tiers of the sport. In many cases, a player only has to lose a set or certain games - not the whole match - to get paid. Players and fixers communicate on social media as matches get underway to ensure the correct outcome is achieved. The rewards can be significant with players sometimes being paid thousands of pounds - often much more than they can earn in prize money. For the betting gangs who have placed money on a guaranteed outcome, the pay off can be much greater.

Two years after File on 4 first revealed concerns about match fixing in the game, the programme looks at how the tennis authorities have responded to the issue and examines the measures put forward by an independent panel to reduce the risk of corruption.

Reporter: Paul Connolly Producer: Paul Grant Editor: Gail Champion

Photo credit: AFP / Getty Images

Inside the World of the Class A Student Jan 30, 2019

Show notes

Tom Wright investigates the normalisation of drug taking amongst Britain’s students. A recent graduate, he says Class A drugs like MDMA are bought and sold with impunity by students across the country. The student bubble, like a music festival, has become an almost decriminalised space - where the chances of getting caught are perceived to be almost non-existent. Drug dealers brazenly target student areas, handing out business cards with a la carte menus of Class A and B drugs.

Unlike music festivals, where on-site drug testing is rapidly becoming the norm, universities do little to engage with harm reduction. Those that do risk widespread criticism for ‘normalising’ drug taking. Meanwhile Universities proclaim "zero tolerance" drugs policies and the police say they have neither the resources or the inclination to punish casual drug use.

Tom Wright investigates whether universities are doing enough to help their students and asks, could campus drug testing help keep our students safe?

If you’ve been affected by addiction, help and support is available: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1kS7QTDB16PWkywhsXJLzxz/information-and-support-addiction-alcohol-drugs-and-gambling

Presenter: Tom Wright Producer: Anna Meisel Editor: Andrew Smith

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