The number of people sleeping rough in the streets of Bristol has suddenly reached crisis point because of the temporary closure of two homeless services.
An urgent appeal has now been made by one of the city’s leading homeless charities - which has called on Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees to enact emergency procedures that are normally reserved for extreme weather.
In an open letter to the city’s leader, the founder of Feed the Homeless Bristol, Naseem Talukdar said the number of people his charity is feeding right now is almost three times more than in previous months.
UPDATE: The story behind Feed The Homeless Bristol's stark letter.
Mr Talukdar said while on an average night in the past few months, the number of hot meals handed out by volunteers would be between 60 to 80, it jumped to nearly 200 at the weekend.
He said that was because of the temporary closure of both the Wild Goose and the Julian Centre - two of the city’s main charitable services for the homeless.
In his open letter, Mr Talukdar said he didn’t want to get into the more general issues around homelessness and the council’s projects to tackle it, but just to highlight that there was a ‘current emergency situation’.
Bristol City Council has emergency procedures to open up beds in crisis times, such as when the temperature drops below freezing overnight during the winter.
But Mr Talukdar said the situation meant something similar had to be done now.
“I’m not here to address the ongoing issues surrounding homelessness in the city that you will already be aware of, but rather the current emergency situation brought about by the temporary closure of significant safe houses that we have had to respond to with limited resources,” he wrote.
Homeless in Bristol
“I receive a first-hand account of the homeless situation via our weekly food distribution activities and networking,” he explained.
“Last weekend, we fed over 197 homeless and rough sleepers on Friday and 180 on Sunday in the city centre alone. This is more than double - almost three times - the number we have been feeding in previous months and is only increasing.
“I am fearful unless action is taken to address the situation and provide safety and security these vulnerable people will fall victim to abuse and be at grave risk of danger, which may result in injury and even further unnecessary deaths due to risks of depression and addiction,” he added.
Mr Talukdar said since the Wild Goose and Julian Trust house have temporarily closed because of refurbishments or limited resources, Feed the Homeless Bristol and other homeless charities have had to ‘shoulder the additional burden’ to keep homeless people fed and looked after.
But all the charities and groups who try to feed rough sleepers are volunteers, and are struggling to cope. “We are struggling to meet the needs on the streets,” he said.
Street Lives: Bristol homelessness
“In turn, this is leading to anger and frustration which we, as volunteers, are having to handle head-on, night after night.”
He urged Mr Rees to ‘take immediate action’ and find and open temporary emergency shelters, until the two other shelters reopen.
Situation is 'not ideal'
The cabinet member for housing at Bristol City Council Paul Smith said: "We understand that this is not ideal for the vulnerable people who rely on these services and hope that they will be able to access these again soon.
“We've also been working hard to bring more empty properties back into use to support rough sleepers.”
A plan to refurbish one of the council’s old offices in Brislington into a night shelter looks set to be given the go-ahead, despite opposition from some of the people who live nearby. But the 24-hour shelter - which has been recommended be given permission by planning officers ahead of a key meeting next week - will only take in 30 people, and won’t be ready until October at the earliest.
