A woman has complained that rough sleepers are drinking and having sex outside her block of flats in Hull, East Yorkshire
A ‘scared’ woman has claimed booze-swigging beggars are intimidating residents by having sex outside her block of flats and passing out on driveways.
Homelessness is rife in Hull, East Yorkshire, with many rough sleepers flocking to the attractive Avenues area of the city because of its bustling nightlife.
The 31-year-old woman, who wished to remain nameless, said beggars down cheap alcohol day and night outside her home.
She said: ‘I feel really sorry for them but it is unnerving when they are there late at night or still there in the morning.
‘One man was drinking from a huge bottle of Lambrini at 10am the other day. Another time, at 6.30am, I almost tripped over him because he was laid in front of the doorway.
‘I don’t like seeing anyone struggling but sleeping on a driveway is taking the mick. It’s pretty intimidating and can be scary.’
Humberside Police moved the offending man on, but he turned back up at the property the next day.
The resident claimed he had been sleeping outside her block for the past four months.
A rough sleeper beds down outside a block of flats in Hull, East Yorkshire, where homelessness is rife
‘I couldn’t believe it when he came back’, she said.
‘I keep trying to put myself in his shoes and I know it must be awful for him but surely there is a hostel he can go to or somewhere safer?’
Charities have urged the public not to give out cash to beggars as some see sleeping rough as a ‘lucrative’ option and turn down the opportunity to stay in hostels.
Hull homeless charity HARP said there were plenty of rooms available to rough sleepers at hostels, but many chose to turn them down.
Hull homeless charity HARP said there were plenty of rooms available to rough sleepers at hostels, but many chose to turn them down
Rough sleepers in the city said temporary accommodation often proved a scary place, where drug-taking was common.
The Avenues is an attractive cosmopolitan neighbourhood with bars and restaurants, away from Hull City Centre.
The scared resident described the homeless problem there as ‘huge’.
She said: ‘I walked down the Avenue last night and saw three people begging and each one asked me for money.
‘Its really sad to see. There must be a better option for them? I know there is help out there.’