Do you give to people begging in town ?

Having worked in drug and alcohol abuse in the past you're better giving your money to the homeless centre. Money will usually go to feed a habit. Often they would rather be on the streets than be in a hostel where they are not allowed alcohol or drugs. It's a very sad situation but to give money just feeds the habit. As people have said, many turn down the offer of a meal brought for them. Some aren't even homeless and operate in gangs, having shifts on the begging locations.

ps re starving dogs.
This was in France - a young woman with a hungry hound stopped me in the street and asked for money for food for her dog. Maybe she had been told that les Anglais loved dogs more than humans. I gave her a few euros but out of interest (mean of me I know) followed her to the supermarket where she bought a huge sack of fusilli. Which I use to boil up and use for both human and animal food.
So at least she was using the money sensibly.

You don't see many people begging in our town centre, and it's one of the most socially deprived areas in the country. I've seen the police often, moving them on, or taking them - where?
I always give something to the "regulars" and have a chat.
One of our sons was homeless and out of luck for some time because of mental illness. At least he had us, but chose to struggle on.
Thank God he's doing better now and he and his wife are helping others.

I used to give food and drink, but heard someone from a homeless charity say that they should be encouraged to use the local services that are there for them. That might work in a big inner city, but not where I live in a rural town where services would be a bus or train ride away, so it’s difficult to know what to do for the best.

How very rude and judgemental of you Social Hermit and very wrong in my case.

I must admit I do give money , only a pound, and I also go to the nesreyshop that sells dog food and give that , it has always been gratefully received. I have enough to be able to do this easily. I also donate to food banks every time I shop. I just always think ‘ there but for the grace of God......

No, never - and anyway these days I don't carry much cash. One 'beggar' has been twice in court; he's receiving a fair sum in benefits. We support several charities and I donate to the local food bank. Where I live there is considerable support for the homeless - and for their dogs too.

I had abuse last week when an 'ex-soldier' was working his way along our road, trying to sell stuff door-to-door. He was absolutely charming when I answered the door but as soon as he realised I was not going to buy anything I was verbally abused. He had also treated two neighbours in the same way.

I was told by a charity walker not to give money to beggars as it will be spent on drugs and drink. I was told to buy food instead. More recently I have seen some beggars using smartphones - so how do they afford those? some big cities have donation points in empty shops where a credit card be put against a window for a quick £2 or £3 donation. I rarely buy the big issue as a) I never know the amount b) the content varies in quality. I wish sellers of the big issue would sell a magazine with recipes or facts about wildlife or puzzle books. Printers don't always sell the magazines such as puzzle books and are returned - the sellers could buy these at cost, sell these for a original fee and keep the difference. I fully appreciate I have more than most of the poor souls but I prefer to give in food

Instead of giving money to the person, I make a reasonable donation every time I have a cuppa at my local Social Bite cafe. The money goes towards a meal for a person who can't afford to pay, and they get to use the toilet too. No angst for me about how they might spend the donation.

I go to Greggs and get a couple of gift cards for a fiver or so, and have them handy in my pocket for when I see someone I think could do with a drink and pie/sandwich.

I give money to street buskers. I would buy food and give instead of money to beggars. My brother was an alcoholic, giving money would not have helped.

Thanks grannyactivist. There are no easy answers. My daughter started off believing every story but was soon disillusioned. She has also had many disappointments, when it seemed that people were turning their lives around, with the charity's help, but then slid back into drugs and rough sleeping. So now she accepts that people are going to lie, relapse, break promises, etc, because problems that have built up over years can't be fixed just by putting a roof over someone's head. Most of the people she helps have very complex issues. Few of them are a danger to others but many are a danger to themselves.

I presume most of the one's saying "No" on here are pathetic Tories and Little Englanders!

And you presume too much TheSocialHermit, unless you've done a poll of the voting predilections of everyone who has posted so far? You certainly got me wrong.

Exactly Bluecat.
We can see what is front of us and sometimes should be a little bit compassionate rather than judgmental.

I usually ask if they'd like a coffee but one guy then gave me a very complicated order involving a latte plus a breakfast sandwich with hash browns and a side of fries!! I did get it but now am wary of asking!

No ours are famous one has a council house and the other parks his car in Tescos for 3 hours goes begging than back home to his flat in a nearby town.Its only dopey tourists who give to them!

I always gave what I could year's ago but times have changed since then and some on the street are not genuine. I prefer to donate to my local children's hospice and take part in charity raffles.

Most of the beggars in my city are part of the trafficking gang. I don't give them anything.
I occasionally buy a big issue, but even these have sadly been corrupted by these gangs so always ask to see their badge!!
I also don't like seeing dogs being used. There have been several recent reports of these poor dogs being drugged to keep them still and compliant and they are shared between beggars on shift.

I seldom gave money until one day when I parked my car I saw a woman begging at the exit. It turned out to be the ex-partner of someone I had known a bit a few years earlier, he had been an associate of the man I was dating at that time. So now I always give some money and think about what happened to her. A change in circumstances can happen to any one of us.

I would never give money but would give a hot pasty or sandwich.

Bluecat - great post, I could have written it myself. ????

(In fact if I’d ever helped a lady in a cupboard I may have thought you were my mother-in-law. ?

There are many reasons for
homelessness - not just substance abuse but also mental health issues, relationship breakdown, domestic violence, etc. My DD runs a local homeless charity which she co-founded and I asked her about street beggars. She said that it is a very difficult moral question which is hotly debated.

Her opinion is that there is no right or wrong answer. On one hand, she has seen many instances where begging is funding people's addiction and contributing to their personal decline. On the other hand, if they don't get money that way, they may turn to crime to get it. People won't start their recovery until they are ready, and until the resources are available to help them, and many will turn to crime if there's no other way to fund their addiction.

DD says that she knows quite a few people, usually ex-homeless, who are accommodated but pretend to be homeless. They always have a good sob story and it's usually to get money for drugs or alcohol.

Her advice is to only give to someone if you feel comfortable about it, treat stories with some scepticism and suggest other ways of helping, eg contacting the council's outreach team or a homeless charity.

I don't think that the big problem, at least in our city, is professional beggars. It's drugs, and to a lesser degree alcohol, which is contributing to the massive number of street beggars, whether homeless or not. Drugs are cheap, they offer temporary escape and the long term help for recovery isn't widely available. However, DD sees many people with serious mental health problems - some with addictions, some not - and the help available is virtually non-existent.

I remember looking after her kids over an Easter weekend whilst she was trying to help a woman whose home was a cupboard outside a pub where they kept the bins. This woman was an alcoholic with severe mental health problems, and was physically and sexually abused by her boyfriend (who had a flat and didn't live in the cupboard.) It took DD ages to coax her to come with her to hospital, where they kept her for a couple of days for her physical injuries but then wanted to put her back on the street because there were no beds available for mental health. DD practically had to beg until they found a place in the psychiatric care unit.

That's just one person and there are thousands like her. There's supposed to be care in the community but the resources just don't exist, so mentally ill people are liable to end up on the street. Many of them self-medicate with illegal drugs. So it's often not a straightforward case of substance abuse, there is serious mental illness too.

So, all in all, a very complex problem. Should you give them money? If you want to. Will they spend it on drugs or booze? Possibly. Is their sad story true? Possibly. Are they all addicts? No, some are not. Are they all mentally ill? No, some are not. Are Are they professional beggars? Probably not. Is there help available? Yes, but you have to know how to access it. That's what the charities can do.

My husband always gives to people he sees on the street. We came out of a supermarket one day and there was a young man begging for change my DH gave him a £5 note the young man couldn’t believe it and said ‘are you sure do u want change’ certainly not said DH. Whilst we are very aware it may have been spent on something we wouldn’t spend it on it was not a reason not to give. I always think it could be my son.

Sometimes I do. If when I come out of a supermarket I sometimes see homeless persons - always on their own - and will give them the £1 coin I used for my trolley - if I have any more loose coins in pocket will give them that too.

The Romanian gangs are definitely a big problem, they really need rounding up and charged by the Police. I always give to the poor in our area when out shopping, there but for the grace of god could go any of us.