‘I get emotional thinking I’ll be off the streets’

Work has begun to try to meet the Prime Minister’s pledge to offer all rough sleepers a route off the streets before Christmas.

Andy Burnham made the promise on his first day in the job and the government has since allocated more than £12m to the West of England Combined Authority to tackle homelessness over the next three years.

In Bristol, the number of people sleeping rough has increased steadily since Covid, with the council's monthly street count now approaching the highest-ever recorded.

One charity said it was "confident" accommodation could be found for everyone currently in need but that long-term success would depend on making sure the right support and housing was available.

"They actually came to me today and said they're going to house me from three o'clock this afternoon,” Dexter, who has been sleeping rough for 18 months, said.

He said he was delighted to have somewhere to go.

"More than anything it's really, really boring,” he said. “The worst bit of it is people just walk by. You're kind of invisible a lot of the time.

"Them coming and offering me housing today was quite a surprise. It came out of nowhere."

Dexter said he had not previously asked for help because he had not wanted to be separated from his dog, Reginald.

He has been told, though, that there was now space for them both.

"I'm pretty chuffed with that because I can't cope without this one [Reginald]," he explained. "He keeps me sane on a day-to-day basis, gets me up in the morning."

Dexter said he became homeless as a result of experiencing depression and alcoholism after losing a close friend.

"There's been a lot of times where I've felt incredibly vulnerable," he said.

"I don't think I'll find myself out here again. I want to get back towards doing some work."

Patrick said he had been homeless on-and-off for eight years, since a family breakdown.

"I lost my family and my job in one fell swoop," he said. "It sent me a bit depressed, I couldn't cope on my own.

"My self-esteem went down and I just haven't been able to get back on my feet."

He said his most recent shelter placement lasted about two months, ending after he had friends over when overnight guests were not allowed.

"They gave me all these rules but they didn't help me to cope with being lonely indoors,” he said.

Patrick admits that the prospect of being responsible for bills was also daunting but he said with the right support he thinks he could succeed.

He said being off the streets by Christmas would mean "happiness, security" to him.

"I get emotional thinking about it," he said. "A future - it would mean a lot.

"I hope they're not lying. I would really like to be housed."

St Mungos delivers homeless outreach services on behalf of the city council.

David Ingerslev, from the charity, said: "I am confident we'll have an offer for everyone.”

He said the charity was trying to set up a range of options to meet different people's needs in different locations across the city.

"There are women-only spaces, spaces where pets can be accepted, places with different amounts of support of available," he said.

But Ingerslev said it was "a really big logistical challenge" to have the right places available for the right people at the right time.

He estimated there would need to be about 200 extra bed spaces in the city to meet demand.

"We're preparing for all eventualities," he said.

"Some people won't accept the offers and where they don't we're going to put additional support in place for people affected by things like mental health issues, learning difficulties, or substance misuse.”

Ingerslev said one of the biggest challenges was finding something more permanent for people placed in an emergency shelter.

Supported accommodation is often the best option but all 900 of the city’s beds are currently taken.

"The move-on from [supported housing] is much slower than it used to be,” Ingerslev said.

"We need to unlock the supported accommodation that we have."

However, that requires affordable housing for people to move into and Ingerslev said high housing costs in the city were at the root of the problem because they increase demand for social housing and make it harder to buy potential supported accommodation properties.

"It's an attractive city to come and live in,” he said "but that's contributing to the pressure on the housing market."

If you see someone sleeping rough, you can contact StreetLink to connect them to support.

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