Give us a chance

THE stigma associated with homelessness is so ill-informed.

The average person walking down the street has the opinion that almost all homeless people are there through faults of their own in general either through addiction to drugs, alcohol or gambling.

These ideas are partly put into their minds through international media coverage which tends to concentrate on the more negative sides of homeless people.

Hopefully today I can put a few facts straight and alter a few opinions about this form of stereotyping.

I was homeless, but I was fortunate enough to secure a room with Davis House, a hostel that within itself is marred by stigma.

I did not become homeless through fault of my own. I had a good job and a rented room. Circumstances beyond my control forced me out of my job namely neck and back muscle problems which I could not afford to have treated by a chiropractor.

As a result of this I did not recover quickly and had too much time off work, and was told that my job as a parcel sorter could not be covered by agency workers for much longer. I returned to work before I was fully recovered and aggravated the injury.

I had no choice but to resign with the promise of an excellent reference. Although I was a permanent employee, I was not under contract to the franchisee, so I had no legal recourse. Consequently, no job no rent money.

I often hear people say: "Why did you not turn to family or friends?"

Well at first I did. However after a few months I discovered some major problems within the system.

Firstly, you cannot claim Jobseekers Allowance for yourself without it affecting the person you are staying with financially.

Getting a job without stable accommodation is almost impossible. I turned to Davis House. They were more than happy to offer as much help as they could. Another question I hear is: "Why do you not get another job now that you have stable accommodation?"

This question has several answers. Firstly, see an employer's reaction when they read that you lost your last job through physical injury.

Secondly, when they read your address (stigma as mentioned earlier). And thirdly, if you are short on qualifications.

Yet another question I hear is: "Why do you not go to the agencies? They take anyone."

Firstly, the average agency is about as reliable as a government promise. Secondly, most landlords consider agency workers to have unstable work and will not rent to them.

And thirdly, even if you only do one day's work for an agency, you still have to sign off and then go through the stress of making a new claim.

My main point is that we are not all as we are portrayed in numerous documentaries and programmes.

Having lived here for a few months I have met numerous people from all walks of life whose circumstances have required the need for help and plenty of them are here through circumstances beyond their control.

Yes, there are those who have brought it upon themselves but there are plenty who have not. I can definitely tell you one thing for certain though many of these people (even those with addictions) can be far more pleasant and enjoyable company than the so-called "average person,"

And yes, once upon a time I used to have the same prejudices.

So while I was homeless, why did I not seek help from the council?

Well if you are a single, reasonably healthy person, try going to the council yourself and seeing how much help they can offer. Apart from hostels and private bedsits that are over-priced and barely fit to live in.

They can do nothing. The single person's waiting list is around five years.

The council have a policy called priority and non-priority homeless, and of course single people fall into the non-priority category.

So all I ask is that the next time you think to yourself "drop out", or "lazy homeless sponger", you might reconsider and be a little less hostile-minded.