There is someone homeless on the street...

[ricid]

Every Christmas, I take my two boys out with £50 worth of £5 gift cards, normally Greggs. We hand them out to the homeless on the street but don#t tell them how much is on it. That works far better than any of the options given, because it's not cash, it's not food which they may not want and they don't know the value of the card so can't easily swap it for cash or other.

I also put the gift cards through as a business expense so it's a tax write off, I feel epic, my boys learn a valuable lesson, but it doesn't actually cost me very much

TIL you can buy Greggs gift cards.

 

[Illusion]

I give them food and drink mostly. More so in winter

On the odd occasion I might give some small change

I never reward the ones that hang around near cash machines as they are pressuring people

If they are clearly on drugs I probably wouldn’t give them the time of day

 

[scorchisio]

I treat homeless people to meals, drinks and give them cash and spare clothes within reason.

Always try to do my bit however I took a lad to a chippy recently who looked starving I asked for the biggest kebab on the menu and left a tenner with the woman serving on the till.

I left and was lighting up a smoke outside and he was begging them to give him the tenner and to cancel the kebab.

Needless to say they can all get stuffed now don't get me wrong I know they are mostly addicts with many problems but that really got on my ****

 

[Feek]

I left and was lighting up a smoke outside and he was begging them to give him the tenner and to cancel the kebab.

Perhaps he didn’t like kebabs and wanted a healthy alternative instead.

 

[Efour]

Some kind of apple based bevarage.

 

[Megahurtz400]

The number of homeless people seems to be growing exponentially in my hometown. To be fair I haven’t been into the town centre for more than 5 minutes for more than a year or sk as it’s dying.

I’ve given money in the past, bought lots of homeless people food on lots of occasions and never had one say anything other than thank you and gracefully accept it.

I’m sure that this could be enabling their habits, but maybe one of the times I’ve bought someone a coffee and a sandwich, it’s given them the energy or hope to go find some professional help to start the process of improving their circumstances and that’s enough for me.

 

[malachi]

Again, out last night queuing up for the Glee Club. Approached by a female beggar, this time they had make up on. Didn't even make the effort to try and look homeless.

I cut her off halfway through her sentence before she finished asking for money. The dame cheek.

Walking through the town centre this morning, at 6.30. I hear from the side of me "Hey! Hey mate! Can you spare any change!?!?!"

I must have one of those faces beggars feel the need to approach me

 

[Rincewindle]

Years ago when i was a postie doing my delivery i was walking up to a town centre office to deliver the mail and saw a homeless guy asleep in the porch.

Not wanting to disturb him i leant over him to post the mail through the door when he suddenly jumped up and pulled a knife on me. instinct realy took over and i decked the guy.

Left him laying there and went on with my delivery. the softer side soon took over though and i felt bad in what i had done so dropped my bag off in the bakery a little further up the road bought a soup and pasty and headed back to him.

He turned out to be a nice guy apologised for pulling the knife {and i said sorry for hitting him} explained to me he had been robbed by other homeless people a few times that is why he carried one.

We had a bit of a chat turns out he was homeless due to marital break up losing job etc.

Saw him on and off over the next couple of years around town, would say hi and get him a sandwich / pasty / hot drink.

Then he just disapeared. hope he got himself turned around and back into a job and stable life.

So to answer the op yea i give food never money. and yes there are profesional beggars about. but also genuine ones like the guy i mentioned.

 

[slick rick]

When I was in school there was a homeless guy sat outside the shop one lunchtime, I didn't have a lot of money so picked up a bottle of drink and a small pasty from the shop and when I tried to hand it to him he told me he "didn't want that ****" in an aggressive manner.

Never given any of them money or anything directly since then.

 

[Narj]

On a slightly related note, has anyone noticed the "Charity Beggars" that come around the pub now have card machines on them to get around the "sorry, no change" response? Bloody cheek!

 

[wnb]

Do you refuse to give money? Yes, I walk on
Do you only give food/drink? I give them nothing
Do you assume they are on drugs? No
Do you think they could be fake beggars? Some might be.

It's not my job to support the homeless.

 

[Monkeynut]

Have experienced far too many supposedly "homeless" people who are picky with what food you give them, and just want money. So I give them nothing.

 

[malachi]

Do you refuse to give money? Yes, I walk on
Do you only give food/drink? I give them nothing
Do you assume they are on drugs? No
Do you think they could be fake beggars? Some might be.

It's not my job to support the homeless.

My thoughts exactly.

 

[flea.rider]

Do you refuse to give money? yes
Do you only give food/drink? no
Do you assume they are on drugs? no
Do you think they could be fake beggars?yes
i'll ask why are you homeless ?
do you not want a job ?
why can't you get one ?
I lived in a squat for 7 months a old burnt out house smoking loads of weed taking acid ... then I stopped
living in a old burnt out house ...
got a job and worked a bit ..
sorry if I sound harsh but if you want to get out you will .. most don't
i'll still ask the questions and if they give the right answers i'll buy them lunch
if not **** them ..
the only exception to this is the mentally perceived homeless .. but they could be playing the game as well

 

[Energize]

Do you refuse to give money?
Do you only give food/drink?
Do you assume they are on drugs?
Do you think they could be fake beggars?

The above points are popular points as to why as a community majority of people don't support the homelessness.

So I was wondering, is being kind important than being right?

I just ignore them, unfortunately the high streets are now so littered with beggars and change chuggers it's like walking a minefield.

 

[ivrytwr3]

I used to give to those on the street - one time i was having a great night out, things were going well in life and 'pass it on' - I gave a guy a £20.

But i no longer give - i am fed up of our streets looking like refugee camps. In this current climate there are so many organisations and charities that there is no need for people to be living on the streets. However, shelters etc come with basic rules - no drugs, alcohol, theft, aggressive behaviour etc - until these people WANT to get clean they are choosing to live on the streets - vicious circle.

But the main straw that broke the proverbial ungulate mammal spinal column was when i was in London a few years ago on a course. I arrived at the facility at around 6.30am and this 'homeless' guy came around the corner, rolled out his sleeping bag in a shop doorway, put out his begging cup, checked his mobile for a few minutes, crawled into his sleeping bag and was still there when i left later that day.

I feel like the UK's good nature is getting taking advantage of by the professional beggars and the genuine ones in need are suffering because of it.

 

[Efour]

I don't begrudge a "homeless" person having a mobile.....

What's it cost to get a mobile... Nothing... Free sim card.. a 3rd hand phone. Free wifi Everywhere.
Free charging at a homeless shelter/starbucks/ anywhere with a plug socket.
How are you expected to get back into society if you can't be part of it, be contacted by potential work or support people?

yeah, it is a dodgy balance to draw the line under....

 

[memyselfandi]

Do you refuse to give money? 100% refuse
Do you only give food/drink? A long time ago i bought a homeless guy some warm food (it was just some greggs) on a cold day and he threw it back at me with the phrase "Just give me the ******* money!" so never again
Do you assume they are on drugs? Having seen several on Parliament street in Nottingham in the middle of a Heroin nod it's mainly my goto thought even though i know all aren't the same
Do you think they could be fake beggars? There's a woman who religiously begs at the bus stops on Parliament street in Notts and she does it to beg for her bus fair home as I've seen her get off the bus and whip her keys out and go in her house. Plus there are hordes of homeless who fare dodge on the trams from the surrounding areas of the city into the city centre to setup shop and beg.

I get sick to death of being pestered for change every 25m i walk in Nottingham city centre and at every cash machine I go near not to forget the roaming groups of 4-5 homeless that wander around the city shout and swearing at everything and anyone.

I may be cold hearted but unfortunately this is what I see and this is how I react

As someone else who lives in Nottingham ... this, oh so much this.

Nottingham centre is quickly becoming practically a no-go area at times due to the number of aggressive beggars attempting to get money out of people. And there are a lot of fake beggars in them who are not interested in anything other than getting some money (I was listening to someone talking to one the other day and they were trying to give them information on where they could get help and excuses the "homeless" person was given were getting weaker and weaker as the conversation went on ... they just wanted some cash they didn't want any actual help with their situation).

 

[malachi]

Spent the last few days in Poland in their capital city Warsaw and now in Krakow. Only seen 4 homeless people on the streets. Makes places like London look like a 3rd world country.

 

[Tinders]

I regularly take my mom into the ethnic part of Brum (Coventry Rd) for shopping. And fake begging is very much a thing, the mainly eastern europeans but they now have been sussed, and replaced with English beggars. People regularly give them money, I dont, i feel bad for it, but i just cant bring myself to do it.

There has been a couple of cases in my town where supposed beggars have been found to be quite well off