Giving money to people on the street

I do wonder how he affords a mobile phone though!

Yes, dragonfly and where does he charge it? I was about to give to a guy sitting on the pavement looking terrible and then I noticed that his mobile phone was a much better one than mine, so decided against it. There has been a great deal of fraudulent begging in Bath and reporters have followed beggars to banks where they pay in their takings, and then to the car park to get in their car and drive away. They treat it as a well paid job, and there are year-round tourists in Bath willing to donate.

I have come unstuck several times. Last winter I drove past a young woman lying on the ground wrapped in a duvet in a bus shelter with a lot of belongings in a supermarket trolley. It was a freezing day so I parked further on and walked back to see if I could help. She said she was waiting for a lift but when I drove back past half an hour later, she was still there, so I went to the supermarket and got her the biggest bar of chocolate I could find and a large coffee, and took them back.

She just said "I don't drink coffee and I hate chocolate" and wouldn't take them. I asked if there was anything else I could do and she said "Yes, F* off!" so I did.

I've had several encounters like this so now I give by direct debit to Crisis or similar, and will buy the Big Issue, but that's all. I don't want to fund drug and alcohol habits or be taken for a mug.

I don't give money but do belong to a knitting group and we donate hats, scarves and gloves to the local mission. The homeless people go for Christmas dinner and are given presents. We are asked to use dark wool because the homeless are unable to wash them.

We had someone in our High Street last week who looked dirty, thin and very cold. I went and bought him a sandwich, a pair of gloves from the charity shop and they gave me a long woolly scarf for him. He seemed pleased to accept the offerings, however I saw him later with his hands under his armpits to keep warm but no gloves. I didn’t notice if he had the scarf on. I wonder if I did right.

NanKate Something very similar happened with me. A young woman in a bad state, hardly any teeth, sitting on a cold pavement, so I went into Primark and bought her a scarf, hat and woolly gloves and took them back and she said thanks, but an hour later we walked past and she wasn't wearing any of them. I guess people give more if the person looks freezing cold, and possibly the goods are sold to fund a drug habit or whatever.

Using the fact that a few are frauds to ignore the majority need is a comfortable way of avoiding facing up to the extent of the problem or doing anything about it.

The OP’s question is whether we give to people on the streets or donate to genuine charities. Those who choose the second option aren’t doing nothing. There’s nothing comfortable about walking past someone who looks to be in need, but if you sponsor a room at Centrepoint you know for certain that your money is keeping someone safe that night.

Sparklefizz I’m really amazed how much contact you have with the homeless comminuity and how much your gifts are abused or rejected ???

We both have regular standing order donations to various charities but I usually give in the street as well (DH will only do so to registered charities). My view is that the person 'begging' needs that pound or two more than I do - I dont bother to find out if they are 'genuine' or not.

Anja I go into Bath regularly, hence the contact I suppose.

40 years ago when there was less begging, I had just walked back home in the rain pushing my toddler daughter in the buggy (I walked everywhere bc had no car), and was just getting dry and sorting things out when there was a knock at the door, and a woman and toddler were standing on the doorstep soaked to the skin without coats on. She asked me if I had any clothes I could spare for her little girl.

I was horrified that the child was soaked and had no coat or warm clothes and asked her to come back in 10 minutes. I rushed upstairs to my daughter's room and stuffed half of her clothes into a bag and gave it to the woman, who then walked down the road and got into a car much newer than the old banger my husband drove!

He was furious when he came home and I told him because we were extremely hard up and there was no way we could afford to replace those clothes.

I think I've often been taken for a mug

Ah, Monica, now you have me wondering.

Sadly there will always be people to take advantage which ruins it for those who are genuinely in need .... eg. Grenfell Tower frauds costing hundreds of thousands.

Gosh Sparklefizz how unfortunate you have been ?

I know someone just like you Sparklefizz in real life ?

I often give cash to the apparently down and outs.
I had a funny experience last time I was in hospital. I had come down to sit outside and get some fresh air (apart from the smokers.) Sitting near me, in a wheelchair, was a very feeble looking man, with what I thought was a begging cup on the ground next to him. I had my purse with me, so as I left I dropped some coins into the cup. The man laughed - it was his cup of coffee and the wheelchair belonged to his Dad who was inside the hospital .

I donate to the Salvation Army as they do wondeful work with the homeless. Sometimes I will give to a man/woman on the streets, although we don't get many in this rural area, but I learned a lesson once, back in my Torquay days. I gave a few pounds to a man who looked genuine, but later saw him emerging from an off-licence clutching a 4-pack of lager.
So now I prefer to give to charities who help the homeless.

Fennel, DS was sitting on a low wall in town with his two boys aged 4 and 2 at the time, waiting for us to join them for the annual Easter trail. An elderly couple passed by and dropped a pound in DGS’s Easter bag . I do hope it was just because they looked cute.

I offer to buy them food but don't give money. I point them to a local drop in centre where they will get help

A family member worked for a homeless charity for years so I asked what we should do.
I dislike passing beggars and looking away.
I was told not to give money because of the drugs booze etc but yes buy the big issue and yes buy breakfast tokens and ofcourse support shelter, crisis at Christmas etc.
There are hostels in the cities but as someone has said, often people prefer to be alone or at least free to smoke, drink and have their dogs with them. Like prisons, the homeless hostels are populated by people with mental health problems.
I try to imagine what I would do if I were destitute. I think I'd die the first night from cold.

A lot of assumptions about people on the street. Best to ask their preference if you want to buy them a hot drink or sandwich, not choose it for them. Some cafés are generous with hot drinks and any food which won't be saleable next day, or even an hour later. A local homeless person appreciated a notebook and pen as they write poems.

Blubelle - I've met more than one man who doesn't feel safe to sleep in a hostel. The drunks and, especially, drug users, can be threatening, stealing and fights are rife. One stays in a suburban shop doorway at night, another in a small railway station lift. They might go into the city centre when the Outreach team are there but sleep in safer areas or in the daytime.

Greyduster
The Roma have their roots in Northern India, hence the 'asian' look.

Exactly Elrel! Just stop and ask. Our local man outside M&S had been plied with drinks, sandwiches and mince pies yesterday. He looked stuffed but happy in his doorway but when asked it was a book he wanted. A ‘page turner’ were his exact words.

It must be boring having nothing much to do, nowhere to go, so hence his request.

I don’t give to street people but do give to the Salvation Army and a couple of local charities which help the homeless. They know what they’re doing.

We have two Big Issue sellers with pitches in our little town. They’ve been coming for many years and alternate, but I don’t buy from them either these days as they’ve got quite aggressive - especially the bloke who has a mouthful of gold teeth. Not enough to report them, but enough to make people cross over to avoid them.

To answer the original question, I rarely give money to people on the street, I do give my time and skills (and on occasion a financial donation) on a daily basis to the homelessness charity I work with. But - that's not to say I think it's a bad thing to give to rough sleepers.

This is a huge subject, but there are a couple of points I would like to make. Some rough sleepers are in receipt of benefits so those who are in Universal Credit areas NEED to have a smartphone or access to a computer in order to log on to their UC journals. (Having said that, three out of every five of my clients don't have mobile phones so my charity keeps a phone at a local cafe for their use.)

There are sometimes very good reasons why people refuse offers of a place in a hostel.

One of my clients is a middle aged man who has worked his whole life. A series of unfortunate events left him street homeless and unable to work due to a health problem. He has no mental health issues, doesn't smoke, drink alcohol or use drugs. I have found him to be scrupulously honest and he has great integrity. He was homeless for months before I was able to help him to access the benefits to which he is entitled and during that time he slept on a bench, refusing all offers of a hostel place. Why? Because hostels are often (not always) places where people with mental health, drug and alcohol problems and chaotic lifestyles are all together under one roof and he would have felt unsafe. During his time on the streets he never begged, but accepted the cash that people kindly gave him. His income from benefits is £73.10 out of which he has to pay for his utilities, clothing, maintaining his (tiny) bungalow and buy food. We are now in the process of making a PIP application with him and without the ongoing support of the charity he would find it almost impossible to sustain the tenancy.

At this time of the year thermal socks (any socks actually) are usually very well received by rough sleepers.

Two other charities that provide direct care to the homeless are Feet on the Street and Street Vet. Many rough sleepers have severe foot problems, similar to trench foot. Others have dogs. Both these charities actually go out onto the streets and offer check ups and free treatment.

I watched a documentary about the police recently. They were talking about begging. In the park they found abandoned tents and many crutches. They said they were used as a prop. They also spoke to a well known scammer who begged all over Europe. His "thing" was to rock backwards and forwards pretending he was mentally challenged. The charities ask us not to give to beggers.

Does anyone remember the film "Slumdog Millionaire" where children were deliberately maimed and then sent out begging? I appreciate this was fiction but know that it goes on in India, for example.