I used to have little sympathy for homless people. Like many people on here I used to think that if they wanted to get off the street then there were plenty of hostels and help etc to get off.
My wife works as a manager for a young persons charity which often deals with homeless people. It has really opened my eyes. There really is hardly any help out there, and the majority of homeless people are far from being scum, they are simply people who have had a run of bad luck or made some poor decisions. You might think they can just stay in hostels, but a lot of people deliberately stay away from hostels as they are rife with hard drugs and violence. There is a huge lack of suitable accommodation out there for homeless people, and unless they are under 18 or considered very vulnerable (and I mean very) they are likely to be turned away as there is nowhere for them to stay.
Getting a job is hard at the best of times, especially at the moment. But try doing it when you have no permanent address, clean clothes or education. Then most benefits are also hard to get if you have no address.
There simply is nowhere near enough support out there to get people off the street. I think its shameful that in a rich western county we can let this many people live on the street. Ok, there are a few people who choose to live on the streets, and some that may deserve it, but the majority have the right to basic shelter and food.
