Youngsters study in an evening school in Rambagan, one of Kolkata’s main red light districts. The classes, run by the charity Child in Need Institute, ensure children from the neighbourhood are safe in the evenings and able to keep up with their education. Many children’s mothers are sex workers who work from their homes. Others are at risk of trafficking, alcohol or drug abuse or other social problems if they hang around on the streets at night. Some children have graduated from the night schools and gone on to university.

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One of my images has been commended in the Sunrise Awards for new professional photographers in the north of England. I can’t actually remember which pictures i entered and haven’t officially been told which one has been picked, but a mole tells me it is probably the one above. I have to admit that I feel like a bit of a prat for entering the occasional award because I know that really these things are more about ego than what really matters – namely (in documentary photography) the people whose stories we are meant to be telling. Still though, it’s nice to have something recognised, especially at a time when I’m feeling quite low in confidence and have barely shot a photo in six weeks. I’m itching to get back out there but am no longer interested in single frames, and am in the middle of the long and drawn-out process of trying to work out access for the next project I want to work on.