More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
For those sleeping rough in Kent Christmas is certainly not the most wonderful time of year.
There are around 233 people sleeping rough across Kent and for them it's the same as any other day.
Tony Michael Jones, 52, was sitting up against the stone wall of a high street bank in Chatham on a damp square of cardboard.
According to their website, a soup kitchen was meant to have been set up nearby. But days before Christmas in the freezing cold, it wasn’t.
The street seemed more hollow speaking to Tony, uncaring with the occasional click of footsteps disturbing the quiet.
Tony seemed similarly disinterested in what was around him. Why wouldn't he be after 10 years of being homeless?
In this time, homelessness has risen by 164% nationally and by 242% in Kent. There was a 12% decrease in the number of rough sleepers in the county last year.
A man on a bike wheeled up and wanted to know where the soup kitchen would be. Tony said it was usually here but he hadn’t seen it.
Asking how Christmas would be got the answer anyone would expect. “Same as any other day, I don’t celebrate it," Tony shrugged, adding: “I’m just homeless and that’s it. Trying my best to get money for a deposit on a flat and that’s it.”
He also told me that he didn’t know of any local charities and of his last trip to the council, he said: “Last time I went down there, they just said they couldn’t help me, so that’s it. Full stop. So I can’t be bothered.”
He didn’t seem to think people became more charitable at Christmas either — “People are either charitable or they’re not.”
Of course, there’s no way for passersby to know whether Tony is telling the truth. Even if he isn’t, that does not necessarily mean he doesn't need help.
To see the street and it’s preoccupied pedestrians from Tony's perspective paints a very grim picture. Everything and everyone feels too big and far away.
There is a strong feeling of hopelessness and distrust around the subject of homelessness. The people that walk past every day do not trust homeless people and don’t know how to help them and people like Tony don’t seem to have hope for being helped.
Last year, the Crisis found that almost 70% of people don’t know how to help homeless people and there are reams of articles entitled things like, 'Should we give homeless people money?'
Through all this, there are charities that work very hard to tackle homelessness and people who deeply care about the issue.
Porchlight, for example, work through biting rain and abuse to get rough sleepers out of the cold.
Speaking previously Sonya Langridge who works for the charity said: "I've had them where they've been shouting in my face and swearing, and you've got to look past that - it could be their mental health. I'll still come back."
Linda Gilkes works with her. She added: "They've tried to help themselves before and haven't really got anywhere, but when they see that repeat return they realise the support is really there."
While people like Sonya and Linda will continue their mission, there isn’t really an end to this story until something big changes.
If you've seen a person sleeping on the streets you can call Porchlight's 24 hour hotline on 0800 567 7699.
Read more: Groups are setting up events across Kent to tackle loneliness this Christmas
