Councillor Andy gives first-hand insight into those we see living on streets

After his own experiences he has dedicated much of his time to helping those for, whatever reason, find themselves rough sleeping. He says rural homelessness can be a hidden problem with less obvious help for people.

Councillor Boddington, who represents Ludlow North on Shropshire Council, has now written about some of those he has met and why there can be so many reasons while people may be on the streets, changing the names of those he has helped.

He said: “What I most remember is fear. My mind and my life had fractured and I was sleeping on a bench in Shrewsbury. I was lucky and was rescued.”

Rescuing men and women from the streets is far from easy. Offer someone a hostel or hotel room and it is often refused, he said.

Andy gave some examples: “Alan has a mental health crisis. Things that have happened to him are horrific. It took weeks of talking to him to get him to accept a new tent and sleeping bag. It is proving harder to get him indoors. He wants to find his own way.

"Years ago, Nicky was in town. He was severely bipolar and usually in conversation with God. I’d got the bureaucracy for social housing to a single requirement. Just sign. I met him in a coffee shop and gently asked him to sign. He would not. As his mental health declined, he became more aggressive. The police called on me late one night to ask where he was sleeping but he had fled. We never learnt his fate.

“We learnt the fate of Simon. He was rough sleeping in a garage. Housing officers, myself and residents had been trying to get him in from the cold for years. He became ill and finally accepted hotel accommodation. He died shortly after getting in from the cold."

Andy added: “The people on our streets are in very different circumstances. Some are lost in life. Some are on a journey not knowing where it will end. There are also full-time beggars, some of whom are modern day slaves.

"Mental health is always the biggest issue for genuine rough sleepers. For years, we had army veterans passing through, traumatised by war. On a journey to nowhere in particular.

"It’s hard for us living in bricks and mortar to understand why someone would continue on the streets rather than take up an offer of accommodation. All rough sleepers in Shropshire are offered accommodation by the council, which has very effective rough sleeping team.

"Sometimes it is easier. A fellow councillor and I picked up a man camping in woods. His eyes widened with delight when we showed his hotel room. He is now in in regular accommodation.

"I was also lucky in being rescued by people I barely knew, friends and my family. I can never repay that debt but I can help others."