Homeless in the UK

[ewerk 30610]

I’m sure there’s a reason for it, I just can’t put my finger on it.  

 

[Alex 35079]

That’ll be a very conservative estimate as well (shit pun intended) 

[Renton 21623]

The other thing I've noticed is that it's not just about the numbers, bad as they are. A few years back people didn't seem as desperate. I suspect some were begging, but I had some kind of dwelling to keep them relatively healthy. (I'm not remotely suggesting the Daily Heil crap they were driving to their pitches in brand new Jags etc btw).

 

Now I can see genuine despair in peoples faces. In Edinburgh there were lasses in floods of tears about the position they were in. Grey faces, ooen sores, people with terrible tremors, people who were clearly psychotic  (and hence very scary). Homeless people fighting each other over territory.

 

You could tell most wanted out of it but there is no route for them. I don't know, maybe it's drugs, maybe it's me that's changed, but I don't think so. This really should be a matter of national urgency and it should be the governments responsibility to intervene, not kind hearted individuals like @wykikitoon. 

Edited December 29, 2019 by Renton

[Dr Gloom 21922]

It’s exacerbated by how we pay for everything now with contactless cards. I never carry any change any more. I ended up giving a £20 note the other day to someone who was particularly desperate. I always try and make eye contact and chat to homeless people even when I don’t have any cash. It’s awful how people blank them. How shite must they feel

[Gemmill 44872]

10 hours ago, Dr Gloom said:

We’ve got people pitching tents on the streets down here now. It’s starting to look like San Francisco

The lasses pitch jumper tents when I strut by. 

[Gemmill 44872]

1 hour ago, Renton said:

Grey faces, ooen sores, people with terrible tremors, people who were clearly psychotic  (and hence very scary). 

I mean that just sounds like Scotland. 

[Kid Dynamite 7027]

12 hours ago, Renton said:

The other thing I've noticed is that it's not just about the numbers, bad as they are. A few years back people didn't seem as desperate. I suspect some were begging, but I had some kind of dwelling to keep them relatively healthy. (I'm not remotely suggesting the Daily Heil crap they were driving to their pitches in brand new Jags etc btw).

 

Now I can see genuine despair in peoples faces. In Edinburgh there were lasses in floods of tears about the position they were in. Grey faces, ooen sores, people with terrible tremors, people who were clearly psychotic  (and hence very scary). Homeless people fighting each other over territory.

 

You could tell most wanted out of it but there is no route for them. I don't know, maybe it's drugs, maybe it's me that's changed, but I don't think so. This really should be a matter of national urgency and it should be the governments responsibility to intervene, not kind hearted individuals like @wykikitoon. 

 

I disagree that there is no route out. 

 

Local authorities have a duty of care to find hostel accommodation for you until you get a council property if you are homeless. Everyone is also entitled to basic benefit payments, housing allowance etc. I see a lot of people through work who end up banned from every hostel in town for drug dealing, robbing, violence etc.

 

Where do you draw the line between helping people and making them responsible for their own actions after their 3rd, 4th or 5th chance?

 

I guess like anything there's a massive grey area in the middle between people who genuinely need help to find accommodation and those at the other end who just take the piss. Same with benefits. Unfortunately the Tories would rather have massive collateral damage to punish the minority who try to play the system

[Renton 21623]

2 hours ago, Kid Dynamite said:

 

I disagree that there is no route out. 

 

Local authorities have a duty of care to find hostel accommodation for you until you get a council property if you are homeless. Everyone is also entitled to basic benefit payments, housing allowance etc. I see a lot of people through work who end up banned from every hostel in town for drug dealing, robbing, violence etc.

 

Where do you draw the line between helping people and making them responsible for their own actions after their 3rd, 4th or 5th chance?

 

I guess like anything there's a massive grey area in the middle between people who genuinely need help to find accommodation and those at the other end who just take the piss. Same with benefits. Unfortunately the Tories would rather have massive collateral damage to punish the minority who try to play the system

 

You've completely contradicted your first sentence with your last sentence. Which is it, is there a pathway out for these homeless people or isn't there because of tory imposed punitive measures? I dont think many rough sleepers are doing out of choice and nor do I accept they are all criminals like you suggest. If your first sentence is really true, why are there so many homeless? Sounds like you're blaming them really. 

[Alex 35079]

The recent surge in homelessness and rough sleepers is obviously down to the government and their cuts. It shouldn’t even be up for debate. There’s always been people who fall through the cracks for whatever reason, some of it their own doing, but it breaks my fucking heart to see what this country has become 

[Dr Gloom 21922]

It isn’t up for debate. The rise in numbers is clearly a result of austerity, as ewerk’s graph demonstrates. 

[NJS 4384]

Worst thing is I can't remember anyone asking the liar what he was going to do about it - and probably even worse nobody would have cared what his answer was - even if he'd said fuck them.

 

There was a "problem" last year with quite a few rough sleepers around Chelmsford train station - the solution was to install railings across any areas which could be used - that solved it.

[Kid Dynamite 7027]

6 hours ago, Renton said:

 

You've completely contradicted your first sentence with your last sentence. Which is it, is there a pathway out for these homeless people or isn't there because of tory imposed punitive measures? I dont think many rough sleepers are doing out of choice and nor do I accept they are all criminals like you suggest. If your first sentence is really true, why are there so many homeless? Sounds like you're blaming them really. 

 

I didnt suggest they are all criminals. Although you already knew that... 

 

I work with homeless people daily. Some tragic cases, and of course there's a link to austerity. Certainly some self inflicted cases too. Sorry if that's unpalatable 

Edited December 30, 2019 by Kid Dynamite

[Renton 21623]

13 minutes ago, Kid Dynamite said:

 

I didnt suggest they are all criminals. Although you already knew that... 

 

I work with homeless people daily. Some tragic cases, and of course there's a link to austerity. Certainly some self inflicted cases too. Sorry if that's unpalatable 

 

Of course I accept that some are criminals, some are hopeless drug addicts, and some may just not want the type of help the state gives (if in practice it gives any help). My point was that I've observed more people seem desperate but have no pathway to get out of their situation. Maybe my perception is wrong but I doubt it.

 

The Guardian has done quite a lot about this. It's a solvable problem though, with adequate resourcing. Finland get the homeless housed without any preconditions. Means people can be homed first and then get their problems sorted. Seems like common sense to me and it apparently works. 

[NJS 4384]

We should also add those in emergency council accommodation as well as that tends to be fucking miserable. 

 

Again in hindsight I think the council house sell of was Thatcher's biggest crime. 

[Dr Gloom 21922]

3 hours ago, Renton said:

 

Of course I accept that some are criminals, some are hopeless drug addicts, and some may just not want the type of help the state gives (if in practice it gives any help). My point was that I've observed more people seem desperate but have no pathway to get out of their situation. Maybe my perception is wrong but I doubt it.

 

The Guardian has done quite a lot about this. It's a solvable problem though, with adequate resourcing. Finland get the homeless housed without any preconditions. Means people can be homed first and then get their problems sorted. Seems like common sense to me and it apparently works. 

Yeah, but we don’t like scroungers in this country, so...

[ewerk 30610]

6 hours ago, NJS said:

Worst thing is I can't remember anyone asking the liar what he was going to do about it - and probably even worse nobody would have cared what his answer was - even if he'd said fuck them.

 

There was a "problem" last year with quite a few rough sleepers around Chelmsford train station - the solution was to install railings across any areas which could be used - that solved it.

The rise in anti-homeless infrastructure is a fucking disgrace. Under bridges ffs. They’re doing no harm to anyone there.

[Meenzer 15526]

3 hours ago, NJS said:

 

Again in hindsight I think the council house sell of was Thatcher's biggest crime. 

 

There's a hell of a lot can be traced back to it, definitely. 

[Ugly Mackems 133]

47 minutes ago, Meenzer said:

 

There's a hell of a lot can be traced back to it, definitely. 

Plenty houses being built but sadly not council or social housing. 

[Alex 35079]

8 hours ago, ewerk said:

The rise in anti-homeless infrastructure is a fucking disgrace. Under bridges ffs. They’re doing no harm to anyone there.

They’re visible though so they’re a ‘problem’ 

[Isegrim 9775]

Of you can’t see it, there can be no problem. 

Next year they could be offered free seats at SJP, just to fix two visible problems at once.

[Anorthernsoul 1221]

I was reading an article last week about homelessness in the US and the figures for LA and New York are horrific, up to 60 thousand people on the streets. Sickening.

[Alex 35079]

1 hour ago, Anorthernsoul said:

I was reading an article last week about homelessness in the US and the figures for LA and New York are horrific, up to 60 thousand people on the streets. Sickening.

I heard something on the radio about it recently. Don’t know if it was just rough sleepers (guessing not) but the homeless figure for LA was in the tens of thousands iirc. It also mentioned about how you’d have to work about 150 hours on minimum wage to afford the average weekly rent 

[Rayvin 5223]

Maybe we need to spend some time convincing rural dwelling conservative/republican voters that the rest of us aren't voting left wing because we hate their traditions or cultural favourings, it's because we're getting increasingly fucking desperate in an economic sense.

[ewerk 30610]

But we do hate their traditions and cultural favourings?