Do you give to people begging in town ?

I know Shandy, it's just so sad

There seems to be a lot of emphasis on immigrants here. Most of the homeless people I have stopped and spoken to have been British, usually with a background of mental illness or family breakdown, or both. Two that I got to know quite well were firmly against any help from hostels because they didn't want to be told what to do. One of them eventually died from hypothermia

To be honest if I do give them any money I'm not that bothered what they do with it. If it gets them through the day so be it.

I try and engage in a few minutes chat and offer to buy them a drink and sandwich. I dont give money.

In the early 80's I slept on a beach in Crete once, we only had money left for the taxi to the airport and had to risk it. During the night a man with a dog and a torch gave us a good kick to wake us and make us move. I realise now it must have been a policeman! I understand why people have dogs.

One of my sons when he was a young teenager took a Christmas lunch down town to a homeless guy. I was proud of him.

Some facts:
In six years of running a homelessness charity I have only worked with two Eastern Europeans - and both of them were in work at the time.

Many people on the street are not a ‘priority’ for the extremely limited social housing available and private rentals are often unaffordable. E.g. a 31 year old (female) care worker who was sleeping in her car because she could not afford the £500 a month average cost of lodgings from her minimum wage.

Relationship breakdown causes very many (usually men) to move onto the streets. These are lives ‘interrupted’ by homelessness and people affected may be in work or already claiming benefits.

Domestic abuse creates homelessness, although if there are children involved the abused parent can be housed as a ‘priority’.

Homeless people, in my experience, have dogs for companionship - and often already had the dog before becoming street homeless.

Funding for alcohol and substance misuse projects have been cut to the bone so getting a residential place on one is like gold dust. Many people turn to drugs and alcohol after becoming homeless.

crazyH

Due to the Welfare State , there’s no need for anyone to be “poor” in this country, or homeless, for that matter...

If you think our 'welfare' state is a safety net as it used to be, you are VERY out of date.

Even the gainfully employed can fall into homelessness in the UK these days. I have always been in work but following divorce, when our rental house was being sold and I had no money for a deposit, I was very nearly homeless. A friend took pity on me and rented to me without a deposit.

Judge not.

I NEVER give money as I wouldn't like to think my hard earned cash is perhaps being spent on drugs or alcohol but I will never pass a homeless person unless I buy them food. I always ask them if they are vegetarian or have allergies.

GagaJo, I have often wondered how many people 'magic up' a deposit for a rental home. Some people have to move every 6-12 months, even with a family. I remember the last time we moved, the landlord contested the deposit it went through the adjudication system and it took NINE MONTHS to get it back.

There has to be some alternative to this mad housing system we have.

Domestic abuse creates homelessness, although if there are children involved the abused parent can be housed as a ‘priority’.

housed being a loose term too.
I hear from a close relative who works in a food bank in a supposedly lovely area of Britain that they have to provide packs of kettle food for families with children because the only cooking facilities they have in their room(s) is a kettle.

I don't give money anymore but I will buy the Big Issue and I usually tell the lad sat outside Tesco that I don't have any cash but would he like a bar of chocolate or a can of pop, (there is usually pop and chocolate in my shopping bag)! He always says yes and thanks me. If asked for money I'd rather say sorry I have no cash than ignore them. They're human beings after all. And its true, I don't carry cash on me anymore, after getting mugged some years ago.

I give to charities for the homeless but never to beggars. I do sometimes purchase the Big Issue.

I was involved with a young lad years ago who was so desperate for a bed that he smashed a window of our police station ( Southend)
Of course he didn’t run off and was put in the cells.
The local paper picked up on the story and he was given a place to live.
From there he went onto do wonderful work with young men who were more than likely to go to prison.

I always give as I feel so sorry for them, especially if they have a dog with them. The poor dog has drawn the short straw and I long to take the dog off them and give it a good loving home. My son used to buy someone in our town a sandwich and a drink once per week. We didnt see this person for a while and learned that he had died. The poor soul was under 30 years old. So sad in this day and age. Mental health plays a large part and I wish I could do more.

No never. Have bought them a coffee or tea, sandwich, pasty. Then told our local Homeless volunteers, who do keep an eye on those who are in need. Hostels are available.

My local town has a problem with "beggars" being bused in from the nearest big city, so i won't give to any of those.. We had one lady that used to sit on the bridge, bare foot in winter making out she was homeless, she had a house in a very nice that had been provided for her when she arrived in our country and she was on benefits. They local newspaper exposed her.

No not any more as too many of them are anything but homeless.

Near me they tend to target tourist towns like Windsor. They are not homeless- they come in from Slough each day and local taxi drivers have stated that they frequently take them back home complete with their ‘earnings’ once the tourists have left for the day. The locals don’t give to them as they know they are just scroungers.

It’s a very lucrative business.

Yes always, my choice, spend it on whatever they want to

Thank you grannyactivist for giving out the facts.

Good to hear from posters who are actually involved and can give out information rather than perceived information

Genuine question from me grannyactivist.

Many people on the street are not a ‘priority’ for the extremely limited social housing available and private rentals are often unaffordable. E.g. a 31 year old (female) care worker who was sleeping in her car because she could not afford the £500 a month average cost of lodgings from her minimum wage

How does a care home worker get a job nowadays with ‘no fixed abode’ on their CV? I thought rigorous checks on backgrounds would be mandatory for care workers.

Urmstongran
There are a lot of people who are homeless but still working.
The woman grannyactivist mentioned had the job before she was made homeless. The company need not know.
At the very least the woman will be able to get her clothes washed and she could probably get a shower ?

We don't have beggars in our town, but we do have Big Issue sellers. There's one in particular who stands outside the Spar shop and I always bought a copy off her. Just before Christmas I went into the shop, did my shopping and when I came out bought a copy from her, giving her a couple of quid extra as it was Christmas and wished her season's greetings.
As I turned round to put my shopping in my bike pannier, the bike fell over and I dropped all my shopping. The vendor just stood there and watched me struggle! Sorry, but I won't be buying from her any more.

Ah. Thank you for the clarification MS.

We don't have a welfare state anymore it's a horrible thing called Universal Credit. Very little money and incredibly difficult to get even that.

Yes.

MerylStreep is quite right UG - a good number of the people I’ve worked have jobs that pre-date their homelessness.

A ‘typical’ (if there could be said to be such a thing) scenario could be as follows:

A man or woman in their forties gets a flat through a private rental 20 years ago. The month’s deposit, at the time, was £350. The person is in a low paid job and lives hand to mouth and therefore has no savings. After 20 years the landlord has increased the rent and it is now £650 a month. The renter has never defaulted on a rent payment, but the owner has decided to sell the property and gives the tenant one month’s notice. There is a shortage of rental properties in the town and even if one could be found landlords require one month’s deposit plus a month’s rent in advance. It takes several weeks for the original deposit to be returned and in the meantime our person does not have even the £300 difference between the costs of the old deposit and the new - hence s/he becomes homeless.

In fact lodgings in my town are in the region of £500 just for a room and most people in low paid work can only afford up to £400. Lodgings are slightly cheaper in the nearby city, but bus fares are more than £10 a day, so it’s not a workable solution for the staff of nursing homes, care workers, bar staff and hotel workers.

Unless there is a ‘priority’ need no-one can simply get social housing just because they’re homeless and Callistemon is right in saying that providing temporary housing in a B&B is often a very poor substitute for a home. Some B&B providers stipulate that rooms must be vacated during the day.