Child labour, trafficking and domestic abuse mean Albanian children are forfeiting their childhoods and the prospect of a brighter future than those of their parents. As the country transition continues from communism, families struggle to survive. Media and politicians talk of progress, but here the voices of children tell a different story – a story that won’t feature a cosy fireplace, gifts and nativity scenes at Christmastime…

Aurel, 15, lives alone with his father. When his mother died about five years ago he stopped going to school and has been working on the street collecting iron and other precious metal ever since. The only shiny things Aurel will possess this Christmas will be the scrap he will need to sell. Photo by John Schenk.