Southampton Homeless

[Gemmel]

Gutted to see so many homeless people in Southampton, especially over Christmas.

 

I know that some really do choose to live that life, but surely not all of them?

 

I saw kids on the streets today and there is just no reason why this should happen in 2016.

 

I also get that some come to the town center because of the increased crowds, but can't ever remember seeing the numbers I have seen in the last weeks.

 

Amazing to see the Asian community setting up food banks and distributing hoodies, blankets and sleeping bags, last night.

 

If we consider ourselves a responsible and caring society, then we severely letting these people down.

 

As a side note, Birmingham only recognize 3 registered homeless people, yet the city is littered with them.

[Lighthouse]

It did occur to me recently that there are a lot on Above Bar, I guess taking advantage of the Christmas market and increased shoppers.

 

Perhaps I'm just a cruel person but I struggle to empathise, let alone feel responsible, for homeless people in Britain. This isn't South Sudan, most of them were sat begging for change not half a mile from the job centre. My ex was Latvian (probably still is) she came here with no qualifications and limited English skills and found a job within 2 days.

 

FWIW I was walking down towards East Street at night, after the Beer Shev game, and a good half a dozen were sat outside a shop opposite Marlands, passing a joint around. Good to see the money they collect goes to good use.

[CHAPEL END CHARLIE]

My 8 year old God daughter can hardly pass a beggar in the street without stopping to offer them a little (of my) money. Her child-like sense of compassion towards those less fortunate than herself contrasts sharply with the adult lack of empathy honestly professed in the post above.

 

When I'm out and about without that wonderful little girl at my side, and I see a homeless person, I do certainly sympathise with them - especially in the winter weather - and remember that 'there but by the grace of God go I. But to be frank about it l seldom do anything to meaningfully help them. Now I can easily rationalize this reaction by thinking that any small amount of money I might give them would probably end up being spent on drugs or booze, or that being on quite a low income myself I can't really afford to be too generous anyway. But I know deep down somewhere that this is wrong and that my innocent child is right. We should also remember that many of those living on our streets have suffered from child abuse and/or are in the grip of an addiction problem that is far beyond their ability to control.

 

This is perhaps one of those (yes terribly clichéd) situations when our children actually have much to teach us because the day when the fate of humanity is no longer 'our business' is also the day when something important in us dies.

Edited 24 December, 2016 by CHAPEL END CHARLIE

[whelk]

It did occur to me recently that there are a lot on Above Bar, I guess taking advantage of the Christmas market and increased shoppers.

 

Perhaps I'm just a cruel person but I struggle to empathise, let alone feel responsible, for homeless people in Britain. This isn't South Sudan, most of them were sat begging for change not half a mile from the job centre. My ex was Latvian (probably still is) she came here with no qualifications and limited English skills and found a job within 2 days.

 

FWIW I was walking down towards East Street at night, after the Beer Shev game, and a good half a dozen were sat outside a shop opposite Marlands, passing a joint around. Good to see the money they collect goes to good use.

 

Lovely attitude. Others do well so why can't they eh? Our society is becoming very uncaring and many want to take it out on those at the bottom and not the hugely wealthy at the top who don't pay their share.

Sure someone will post that they pick up their sleeping bags and jump in a Porsche as make such a good living.

[Lighthouse]

Lovely attitude. Others do well so why can't they eh? Our society is becoming very uncaring and many want to take it out on those at the bottom and not the hugely wealthy at the top who don't pay their share.

Sure someone will post that they pick up their sleeping bags and jump in a Porsche as make such a good living.

 

What have rich bankers and politicians not paying tax got to do with anything?

 

My attitude is that there are jobs out there for anyone who wants one. I don't expect homeless people to be curing cancer or sending rockets to the moon but seriously, any idiot can flip a few burgers or hang on to the back of a bin lorry if they put their mind to it.

[whelk]

Why do you think there are more homeless and food banks? Society getting fairer? There were schemes and hostels that helped the homeless. Many of these have been cut as no budget for them. The banks helped cause it but more worrying is the lack of compassion of people.

 

I guess you have never met anyone with any issues and just think everyone can get a job. As Charlie says there by the grace of God go I.

Edited 24 December, 2016 by whelk

[aintforever]

I expect most have mental problems or suffer from some form of addiction. I doubt sleeping rough is an easy life so I'm sure most are not in that situation just because they can't be arsed to work. From what I've seen on TV they almost always have some story of abuse, mental breakdown or alcohol/drug addiction which leads them to where they are, some things that could easily happen to any one of us.

 

The ability to empathise with another's situation is a sign of intelligence - looks like Chapel's 8 year old God daughter is ahead of many on here in that respect.

[Jonnyboy]

A friend of mine works closely with the homeless in London. He says that they are swamped with donations of food at this time of year and its frustrating that it's not spread round a bit more equally around the year

[Lighthouse]

I expect most have mental problems or suffer from some form of addiction. I doubt sleeping rough is an easy life so I'm sure most are not in that situation just because they can't be arsed to work. From what I've seen on TV they almost always have some story of abuse, mental breakdown or alcohol/drug addiction which leads them to where they are, some things that could easily happen to any one of us.

 

The ability to empathise with another's situation is a sign of intelligence - looks like Chapel's 8 year old God daughter is ahead of many on here in that respect.

 

Obviously the majority have mental health issues and a background of substance abuse, domestic violence etc. The fact is 1 in 4 people goes through mental health issues in their life. It's up to you how you tackle your issues and control your own destiny. For some that is doubtless harder than others and many will need help.

 

I don't really understand how you can help somebody who is unable to help themself. You can hand out food and blankets but what will that achieve in the long run? Sure you will keep them alive but they're still going to be on the streets. The sad fact is that most of them do have a drug problem and the only way they can feed it is by stealing or begging.

[Ziggy]

My 8 year old God daughter can hardly pass a beggar in the street without stopping to offer them a little (of my) money. Her child-like sense of compassion towards those less fortunate than herself contrasts sharply with the adult lack of empathy honestly professed in the post above.

 

When I'm out and about without that wonderful little girl at my side, and I see a homeless person, I do certainly sympathise with them - especially in the winter weather - and remember that 'there but by the grace of God go I. But to be frank about it l seldom do anything to meaningfully help them. Now I can easily rationalize this reaction by thinking that any small amount of money I might give them would probably end up being spent on drugs or booze, or that being on quite a low income myself I can't really afford to be too generous anyway. But I know deep down somewhere that this is wrong and that my innocent child is right. We should also remember that many of those living on our streets have suffered from child abuse and/or are in the grip of an addiction problem that is far beyond their ability to control.

 

This is perhaps one of those (yes terribly clichéd) situations when our children actually have much to teach us because the day when the fate of humanity is no longer 'our business' is also the day when something important in us dies.

 

Spot on. And a very Merry Christmas to you and your inspirational goddaughter.

[Deanovski]

Nearly all of the homelessame on the high street are not homeless.

[Deanovski]

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/14452407.amp?client=ms-android-samsung

[Guy]

Nearly all of the homeless on the high street are not homeless.

 

There are a lot of 'daytime homeless', people who live in temporary accommodation (B&Bs, hostels etc) but they have to leave them during the day and have nowhere else to go other than sitting around in public.

 

I read recently that one of the most common reasons for rough sleepers not accepting accommodation is that they have a dog that they don't want to be parted from and there are very few hostels that will accept animals.

[Batman]

There are a lot of 'daytime homeless', people who live in temporary accommodation (B&Bs, hostels etc) but they have to leave them during the day and have nowhere else to go other than sitting around in public.

 

I read recently that one of the most common reasons for rough sleepers not accepting accommodation is that they have a dog that they don't want to be parted from and there are very few hostels that will accept animals.

 

which is very selfish IMO.

[Johnny Bognor]

It does seem to be getting worse. Here in Chichester, you never saw a homeless person up to a few years ago. There is a hostel here, but there are regularly 8-10 sleeping rough in Chichester town centre. I never give money as this could be spent on things that make their situation worse (drugs, alcohol etc).

 

If you want to help, offer a cup of coffee if they're cold or a sandwich/burger to eat if they are hungry. Or volunteer your time at a shelter.

[benjii]

What have rich bankers and politicians not paying tax got to do with anything?

 

My attitude is that there are jobs out there for anyone who wants one. I don't expect homeless people to be curing cancer or sending rockets to the moon but seriously, any idiot can flip a few burgers or hang on to the back of a bin lorry if they put their mind to it.

 

I think it's quite hard to get a job if you don't have an address or a bank account and you stink and look a complete mess.

 

If you think most homeless people are homeless because they can't be bothered to get a job then you're perhaps a little dim. I don't expect you to be curing cancer or sending rockets to the moon but any idiot should be able to think their way around that without too much difficulty.

[buctootim]

I think it's quite hard to get a job if you don't have an address or a bank account and you stink and look a complete mess.

 

If you think most homeless people are homeless because they can't be bothered to get a job then you're perhaps a little dim. I don't expect you to be curing cancer or sending rockets to the moon but any idiot should be able to think their way around that without too much difficulty.

 

Homelessness has far more to do with mental health issues and the inability to take medication regularly and manage money (pay rent, budget for food etc) than the availability of housing or jobs. Up until the 1980s a lot of people were simply warehoused in long stay institutional mental hospitals. Now those have all but closed for 'care in the community.'

Edited 28 December, 2016 by buctootim

[whelk]

Does Lighthouse work as a security guard? What a complete cnt this guy (not Lighthouse) is.

 

[Nolan]

Does Lighthouse work as a security guard? What a complete cnt this guy (not Lighthouse) is.

 

It obvs happened cos he pasted it on Facebook innit.

 

It think more homeless people should post on Portsmouth politics pages straight after they're supposedly assailed.

 

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

[JackFrost]

You have to be very careful not to categorise all the "homeless" as the same. They'll be from all walks of life.

 

There are homeless people out there where if you gave them £1 million today, they'd be back in exactly the same predicament in 18 months/2 years. Then again there are also homeless people who have tried to do everything right/gone through a run of unfortunate life events that would result in pretty much anyone ending up in the same situation. Each individual will have their own very unique story.

[whelk]

It obvs happened cos he pasted it on Facebook innit.

 

It think more homeless people should post on Portsmouth politics pages straight after they're supposedly assailed.

 

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

 

Yeah but he can't spell and everthing. Must be homeless. Will never shop at Debenhams never ever never now.

[Nolan]

Yeah but he can't spell and everthing. Must be homeless. Will never shop at Debenhams never ever never now.

So you're not querying how his "thought his bottle had leaked" had expanded to "assault" by the end of the post.?

 

If he had written another paragraph he would have ended up with radiation sickness.

 

Even the mass media don't believe him, hence the overuse of words "claims" and "allegedly" in reports.

[Manuel]

If you want to decrease homelessness you should vote for a different government then increase or redistribute taxes. Sniping at the periphery of the problem won't help anyone.

[whelk]

So you're not querying how his "thought his bottle had leaked" had expanded to "assault" by the end of the post.?

 

If he had written another paragraph he would have ended up with radiation sickness.

 

Even the mass media don't believe him, hence the overuse of words "claims" and "allegedly" in reports.

 

Was being flippant and taking the p iss. Actually agree with you

[Nolan]

Was being flippant and taking the p iss. Actually agree with you

Apologies, I suck at judging sarcasm.

[whelk]

Apologies, I suck at judging sarcasm.

 

Easily done and Tbf posted as if true. There are plenty of people who are cnts to the homeless though.

[Lighthouse]

I think it's quite hard to get a job if you don't have an address or a bank account and you stink and look a complete mess.

 

If you think most homeless people are homeless because they can't be bothered to get a job then you're perhaps a little dim. I don't expect you to be curing cancer or sending rockets to the moon but any idiot should be able to think their way around that without too much difficulty.

 

There are ways around those problems for anyone who puts their mind to it. Not having a bank account is not a valid reason to just give up on life. There are cash in hand jobs you can take and save enough money for some accommodation. You don't need much to get the cheapest low budget house shares on gumtree. Then you can open a bank account (assuming you never had one in the first place for some reason), find other better jobs and go from there. It won't be easy but it's possible for anyone with the determination to turn their life around. That's assuming you can't register the homeless shelter as your address.

 

A friend of my sister had previously worked for a charity, I forget which one, which was involved with local homeless in Cambridge. He said that there was basically enough accommodation to house all the homeless in the City and that anyone you see sleeping rough has been kicked out. Usually for using drugs in the accommodation, fighting or generally being abusive to other residents. I don't know if this is true of other cities.

[whelk]

So you're not querying how his "thought his bottle had leaked" had expanded to "assault" by the end of the post.?

 

If he had written another paragraph he would have ended up with radiation sickness.

 

Even the mass media don't believe him, hence the overuse of words "claims" and "allegedly" in reports.

 

Appears to actually be true https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1237764139647507&id=153132638110668&refsrc=https%3A%2F%2Fm.facebook.com%2FBBCSouthToday%2Fvideos%2F1237764139647507%2F&_rdr

[Jonnyboy]

Apologies, I suck at judging sarcasm.

 

No you just suck.

[Hatch]

Maybe that Pompey homeless bloke should spend his cash on a roof over his head instead of smart phones and internet access.

[Nolan]

Appears to actually be true https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1237764139647507&id=153132638110668&refsrc=https%3A%2F%2Fm.facebook.com%2FBBCSouthToday%2Fvideos%2F1237764139647507%2F&_rdr

No... It's 'true',

 

ie no-one knows if it's true or not so uses quote marks in fear of litigation.

Edited 30 December, 2016 by Nolan

[Nolan]

No you just suck.

Very kind of you to spend 30 seconds of your time on me. I'm indebted.

[Wade Garrett]

Whatever the circumstances of someone being homeless, I have a huge amount of sympathy with anyone who doesn't have a roof over their heads.

 

I'm sure some homeless people turn their lives around, but some are too mentally ill to succeed. Surely they should be looked after.

 

I do give them money occasionally, but there probably are better ways to help them.

[suewhistle]

I read an article about residents of a homeless shelter in London where a surprising percentage of the residents _had_ jobs. But there are some awfully glib answers on here. "Get a cash-in-hand job and save money", "get a room in a house share", "don't spend money on an expensive mobile phone". Realy? Really, really?

[Give it to Ron]

So last night after leaving Giddy Bridge nipped into Tescos to get lottery. In there was the beggar who sits outside in Saints hat he had dropped his bottle of JD and pulled out a £20 note buying another one he expected Tescos to give half price because he dropped it outside their store.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Lighthouse]

I read an article about residents of a homeless shelter in London where a surprising percentage of the residents _had_ jobs. But there are some awfully glib answers on here. "Get a cash-in-hand job and save money", "get a room in a house share", "don't spend money on an expensive mobile phone". Realy? Really, really?

 

Genuine question; what would you say is the best way for a homeless person to get themselves off the street?