A new immersive piece about UK poverty, cost of living, chance, and the thin line between security and destitution
PILOTING SOON
26-29th March, 2026
About BROKE
'BROKE' is NEW unique immersive experience for groups aged 11 upwards.
BROKE enables participants to develop both a ‘head’ and ‘heart’ understanding along with an invitation to respond to the issues of UK poverty and the risk of homelessness.
Like all our immersive pieces we are attempting to tackle issues through
active participation & story telling, coupled with a group debrief.
Why BROKE - and why now
The UK is facing a deep and growing poverty crisis - yet public conversation too often slips into blame, stigma, observing as bystanders or distance. The statistics are sobering:
Over 14.3 million people in the UK are living in poverty
3.8 million people experienced destitution in 2022
1 in 4 people experiencing homelessness are in work
The benefits safety net leaves many below the destitution threshold
Behind these numbers are people navigating illness, redundancy, rising rents, broken relationships, and a system that offers little margin for error.
BROKE exists to address the empathy gap - the space between knowing poverty exists and understanding what it feels like, how it happens, and how communities can respond.
What participants experience in BROKE
Participants are invited into a shared story that unfolds around them. They are asked to observe, react, discuss, and make decisions — not as individuals, but as a group.
Over the course of the workshop, participants will:
Develop understanding
Gain a clearer picture of how UK poverty and the risk of homelessness are shaped by systems, chance, and timing — not simply by personal choices.
Feel the pressure of uncertainty
Experience how instability, limited options, and compounding setbacks affect decision-making, dignity, and wellbeing.
Starting the conversation
So many of us have a hidden story of struggling in isolation and are only a few steps away from disaster.
Conversations serve to normalise the very real struggles felt by many.
Examine the bystander effect
Notice how easy it is to cheer, advise, judge, or distance ourselves — and how these instincts show up in real life when people face hardship.
Explore community as the alternative
Test what happens when responsibility is shared. When listening replaces assumptions. When support becomes collective rather than conditional.
A moment of reflection
BROKE is designed to be emotionally engaging but carefully facilitated, ensuring participants feel held, respected, and able to reflect openly — regardless of their background or lived experience.
What participants leave with
A deeper, embodied understanding of poverty in the UK
Reduced stigma and greater compassion
A shared language for talking about hardship without blame
A clearer sense of how communities — not just individuals — create change
BROKE doesn’t tell people what to think.
It creates the conditions for people to think together.
From experience to understanding
The heart of BROKE lies in what happens after the immersive experience.
Guided by trained facilitators, participants are supported to reflect, process emotions, and connect the story to real-world systems and action.
The debrief is designed to:
Challenge stigma
Poverty is explored as a structural issue — not a moral one.Process emotion safely
Frustration, sadness, anger, and powerlessness are acknowledged and held.Move beyond the bystander effect
Participants examine the difference between charity and community, aid and systemic change.Signpost real action
Local and national organisations, volunteering, advocacy, and support — including signposting for anyone experiencing poverty themselves.
BROKE asks a simple but powerful question:
What kind of community — do we want to be?
BROKE Launch — March | Tunbridge Wells
📍 Location: The Gatehouse, Tunbridge Wells,
📅 Dates: 26–29 March, 2026
⏱️ Time: 2 Hours
👥 Audience: Ages 11+, schools, community groups, organisations
This pilot run marks the beginning of BROKE’s journey - ahead of wider rollout across the UK.
👉 Register interest / attend the launch
Help bring BROKE to life — together
BROKE is being created with the community at its heart. From the start, we want this workshop to carry the fingerprints of the people and groups who help make it possible — a story that will travel with BROKE wherever it goes.
To deliver the Phase 1 pilot, Empathy Action is raising £25,000+, alongside £15,000 already secured through grant funding. This support will bring BROKE to life in March and lay the foundations for its future across the UK.
Your contribution helps:
Create a high-quality, immersive pilot
Ensure access for schools and low-income community groups
Embed shared responsibility and empathy into the programme from the outset
Supporting BROKE isn’t just about funding a production.
It’s about being part of its beginning - and shaping the values it carries forward.
Who’s currently behind it
Linzi Meaden
John & Clare Nevile
David & Libby Skinner
David & Jill Holton
Chris & Jenny Maslin
Helen Nevison
Victoria Sampson
Martha Case
Rowan Williamson
Angela Ward
Gail Armstrong
Sarah & Charles Bailey
Partners
The Orp Foundation
The Chalk Hill Trust
Want to speak to us…
Interested in finding out more or working together? Fill out some info and we will be in touch shortly! We can't wait to hear from you!