Shelter appeals to trace slum families from photos of 1960s and 1970s

Housing charity Shelter wants to trace the people featured in a series of photos taken in the 1960s, including Mrs Tandy and her family, pictured above in Sheffield in 1969

An appeal has been launched to trace the families featured in a series of pictures taken in some of England's poorest and most deprived areas.

The images were taken by photographer Nick Hedges in the 1960s and 1970s for housing charity Shelter in some of the country's biggest cities.

He said the conditions some families lived in "shocked me to the core".

An exhibition will be held later this year in Sheffield, Birmingham and Manchester to mark Shelter's 50th year.

Family walking round the corner, Sheffield, 1969

Mrs Tandy cleaning her backyard, Sheffield, 1969

The images were taken in Birmingham, Manchester, Salford, Newcastle, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield, London and Liverpool.

Mr Hedges said: "It would be wonderful to meet the children I photographed all those years ago and for them to be able to tell their stories.

"I often wonder what happened to them, if they went on to lead happy and healthy lives."

Baby asleep in an armchair in a slum property in Balsall Heath, Birmingham, 1968-1971

Child living in slum area of Birmingham, 1969

Boys clamber across rooftops in Winson Green, Birmingham, 1971

"When I was commissioned by Shelter to take these photographs, I never imagined that decades later they would still have such impact," said Mr Hedges.

"The poverty and terrible conditions I witnessed shocked me to the core.

"I hope that all these years later, by reconnecting with some of those I photographed, I am able to hear good news of what happened to the families."

Bedroom ceiling, Moss Side, Manchester, 1969

Children in their bedroom, Manchester, 1971

Family living in a single room in Moss Side, Manchester, 1969

Campbell Robb, Shelter's chief executive, said: "We would love to hear the stories of the people behind these iconic pictures to help us mark 50 years of fighting bad housing and homelessness.

"I'd encourage anyone who recognises themselves, or family members and friends, to get in touch and let us know what happened after they were taken."

Children playing in Newcastle's West End, 1971

Family living in slum property in Newcastle, 1971

Family living in overcrowded accommodation in Bradford, 1972

A woman pushes a pram up an unadopted road in Bradford in 1970

"These photographs are a sobering piece of history not only for Shelter, but the nation as a whole, and it's important to preserve the stories behind them.

"They show us how far we have come, but also that we must do more for the tens of thousands of families and individuals still desperate for a safe, secure and affordable home."

Courtyard of the Rothschild Dwellings, Whitechapel, London, 1969

Pauline Rump and her younger sister reflected in a mirror at the Rothschild Dwellings, in Whitechapel, London, in 1969

Activity at the opening of a SNAP show house in Liverpool, 1969

Family in their kitchen, Liverpool, 1969

The charity is asking anyone who recognises themselves or anyone else in the images to email: [e-mail] or call: 020 7505 2032.

For a full gallery of images go to click here.