When Tish Murtha died from a brain aneurysm in 2013, she had largely been forgotten. Her key work Youth Unemployment was published to acclaim in 2017, followed by a major retrospective at London's Photographers' Gallery. She has since been recognised as an outstanding social documentary photographer. Setting out to document marginalised communities from within, she made work that resonates strongly in a time of austerity. The anger and frustration in Youth Unemployment even reached the House of Commons, where it became a subject of debate. Elswick Kids is a quieter body of images, made as Murtha walked through Newcastle upon Tyne's working-class Elswick district and never intended as a standalone exhibition. Today, they evoke a time when children freely played in the streets and friendships flourished against a seemingly harsh backdrop. Their stark beauty shines through every page. Elswick Kids makes a vital contribution to understanding life in a northern city in the late twentieth century.