SOME of you in St Helens may have noticed a homeless man who sits near the Parish Church.
He is a young man, 32 years old, but looks older.
He has slept on the streets (yes in the snow last week as well) for nearly three years.
He only wants a job and a roof over his head and came to the UK aged 20 and worked for nine years in a warehouse before losing his job and then home, forcing him to live on the streets.
He is from another EU country, so can’t get benefits as he’s not a UK citizen or an asylum seeker.
When I first met him in December it was a cold, wet night.
I rang the Hope Centre. It was closed.
I rang the Salvation Army. They were full but gave me a number of out of hours social services.
They asked for his mobile number to phone him the next day. But this man is begging for food, he has no mobile.
Thank God for the Salvation Army where he slept on the floor there for three days at Christmas.
Since then I’ve sent three emails to a councillor and visited the Hope Centre, who confirm he can’t get benefits.
He is a human being, who is pale and thin and at risk of illness or worse.
Perhaps any readers may have other ideas to help him.
Name and address submitted
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