|
EDGES MAGAZINE Issue 17 |
April/May 1999 |
HOMELESS ON THE STREETS OF LONDON
Vincent sells the Big Issue outside Westminster Cathedral.
I moved to London last Summer,
in June. I came from Manchester
just to look for work really, without
realising that the housing situation
is so desperate down here.
When
I first came down, I was directed to The Passage, which is a day centre
down the road, and they put me on a list for housing and they put me in
a night shelter. So the next day I went out looking for work, I got
myself a job on a building site. Then after a couple of weeks, I went
back to check how long the housing was going to take, and I told them
that I had found a job, and they told me that if I was working then they
wouldn't be able to help me! So I then tried to get a private flat, but
everywhere I tried they wanted a big deposit or a month in advance rent,
or both. So then I was advised to give up the job and wait for what they
call affordable housing, which is either council or housing association.
I am still waiting, I've been waiting now since June, which is 7-8
months; and they told me the average waiting time is 9 months, so
hopefully soon, I will be getting somewhere to live. I have been in the
night shelter some nights. You are allowed in there from 6.30 in the
evening, but you can't get in after 10 o clock in the evening, then you
have to leave at 7.30 in the morning. In the daytime your left on your
own. The night shelter I go to is run by the Sisters of St. Vincent, it
is an all year round place and they help house you. There 's maybe about
35 male and half a dozen female people there. People who do stick it for
the 8-9 months do get housed. I have seen people get housed, but I have
also seen a lot of people stay there for a couple of weeks and then move
on. So I have been there that long. It's not the nicest of places, but
at the end of the day, it is roof over your head at night time. It's
better than the streets, you know. At the moment I am selling the "Big Issue" - it is like a lifeline for me, it gives me a few pounds in my pocket each day, but more than anything, it occupies my time. From when I leave the night shelter at 7.30 in a morning, if I didn't sell the "Big Issue", then I don't know what I'd do with myself. I'd probably end up involved with drugs or alcohol or something - I can't explain how important it is, but that it really is. I think for most people with drug problems and things, like the people who stay where I stay, who use alcohol and things, I think it is more of a question of boredom. I have spoken to the people who work there, and a lot of these people are very abusive to the staff where I stay. I have asked the people how they put up with such abuse, but they are so understanding about it, I think that they feel sorry for these people with drug problems and alcohol problems. I have never really had a drug problem. I smoked cannabis when I was younger, but I grew out of it and I have never really been into alcohol because a saw my father die through alcohol.
Over the last few years I have discovered about life, that its not what you know but who you know. As you know yourself, if a vacancy comes up, say within a company, then normally there is somebody in that company who knows someone. So I have been to the job centre sometimes, but the type of jobs that come in those places are really the lowest of the low, lowest paid and what I call dead-end jobs. The best jobs never come, the best jobs are always taken by somebody who knows somebody in that company already. There's a lot of cheap labour I think, in London. There are a lot of foreign people as well who don't care, they work for £3 an hour people take advantage.
When I leave the shelter in the morning at 7.30, I usually come by the Cathedral, go to one of the morning masses, either the 8 o clock or 8.30, then after that I usually go to the day centre. I grab a breakfast and come out of there around 10 o clock, if I've had a good nights sleep, that is - if I have not had a good nights sleep, I'll probably fall asleep in the day centre for a couple of hours. I'll then come out and sell the Big Issue outside the Cathedral.
Quite a lot of people have got to know me in the last 6 months, since I've been here. Around Christmastime with the "Big Issue" was quite lucrative, a lot of people were more generous than usual. I got quite a few presents brought to me and quite a few cards with money in, from regular people, what I call regular customers who have got to know me over the last months. But since Christmas it has gone really quiet. I should have my regular customers, but I don't know whether it's the weather or just the time of year, but it just seems to be very quiet since Christmas. People say, and you would think that outside the Cathedral would be quite a good spot, religious, catholic people, Christian people - it is a Christian thing to help the poor, help the homeless, but you'd be surprised how many people do walk past and ignore you. This has led me to think, I don't know what percentage, but for sure it is a lot of people who go to the Cathedral just to be seen to be going. I get ignored by quite a lot of people but the few that don't ignore me make up for that, the few good people. At the beginning I used to get annoyed that people would ignore me, I felt labelled, but then as other people have got to know me and stop to chat to me now and then, they make up for all these other people.
I believe in God myself. I lost my faith once. I was brought up a strict Catholic and then I found myself rebelling. I lost my faith for years, but then since, I have been back in England, the last couple of years, I've found myself going to Church by myself. I used to travel around Europe selling souvenirs at pop concerts. I ended up meeting a Dutch girl and living in Holland for nearly 10 years. Then we broke up in 1997. I came back to Manchester where I got housed, no problem, but I couldn't find any work. I did some voluntary work for a few months, helping old people, and people with learning difficulties but I couldn't get any paid work. So as I said before, I came to London looking for work without realising the housing situation - its so desperate in London.
I lived in the North of Amsterdam from around 1988 with a dutch girl whose family had a big laundry business, so I worked for the family. The problem was then when we broke up in 1997; because I worked for the family and the relationship broke up, my livelihood went with it. I have travelled quite a lot. My father died when I was 17, then a year later my mum; so I decided to travel around Europe with a company that organised pop concerts. I liked to travel, I never dreamt in my life that I would be homeless; I still can't believe it.
Since I have been homeless, I have felt my health deteriorating. When you are staying in a night shelter you are not allowed to be sick. A couple of times I have been to a doctor and been told to stay in bed for a couple of days, but I haven't got a bed to stay in for a couple of days, but staying in the night shelter you are not allowed to be sick because, no matter what, you have to leave at 7.30 in the morning. All the staff want to go home at that time and there's nobody there to look after you. That is the worst thing I have found since I have been homeless.
I have got a younger sister, I think she is still in the Manchester area, but I lost contact with her when I started living in Holland. I tried to trace her last year when I was back in Manchester but I couldn't. I went to the Salvation Army, as they have an organisation there who help trace people, I paid £15 fee; there is a £45 fee for normal people, and £15 if your homeless or unemployed, so I paid that, but they still didn't trace her. Since then I've met a girl who is a civil servant, she is busy at the moment trying to trace her for me. As I said before, its more who you know than what you know that helps you through life, that's what I've learned from my experiences.
I don't know if optimistic is the right word, but I am certainly hopeful that I will meet somebody who will give me a chance. Since I have been doing the "Big Issue", I have met a lot of homeless people in the same position and have shared my pitch with them, let them sell the "Big Issue" with me there. Twice I have been ripped off by these people, so I just keep myself to myself lately. People keep saying to me that I am always getting ripped off by people, but you can't go through life not trusting people. People say I am too trustworthy, but I don't know. I think its pretty sad in life if you can't trust people, but you never know until its too late, you don't know if somebody is going to rip you off. There are some very clever con artists about.
If I could ask Tony Blair something, I would ask him why there is so much property lying empty around London. There are a lot of private places, too expensive for people to buy and are just empty.
I would like to say to Edges readers if you ever come to Westminster Cathedral to say hello to me, the "Big Issue" vendor outside, I'll be standing outside the Cathedral nearly all day, every day.
