Clearing homeless in Windsor for the royal wedding

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WTAF? I remember fences were built to hide the ‘ unsightly’ townships in South Africa when they hosted the World Cup. I truly can’t believe this, heaven forbid the royals should see real life which might offend their sensibilities. As the old joke says the queen thinks the whole country smells of paint as there are people running around ahead of them sprucing everything up. Yes, we mustn’t present Windsor in an unfavourable light must we, nobody needs to be bothered by those pesky homeless.

Very controversial, and I expect to get shot down in flames, but one way of resolving the problem of addicts begging for drug money would to go back to the drug policy we had in the 60s, where addicts could register and get their drugs prescribed for them.

The insistence on reduction and abstinence doesn't seem to be working very well imo.

Very controversial, and I expect to get shot down in flames, but one way of resolving the problem of addicts begging for drug money would to go back to the drug policy we had in the 60s, where addicts could register and get their drugs prescribed for them.

The insistence on reduction and abstinence doesn't seem to be working very well imo.

This is far more an addiction issue than a homelessness issue.

It's a terrible waste of human life.

Some of these people on the streets are there due to the appalling housing problems in this country. There're a few threads on mumsnet from time to time from desperate mothers being evicted with nowhere to go, so why the emphasis here on 'it's all their own fault'? It's true there are many reasons and it is complex, but think about the problems causing them to be on drugs in the first place.

The economy is totally broken, there is no such thing as an honest days' work for an honest days' pay anymore, most employment is insecure and does not pay, jobs for life have gone and livelihoods ruined everywhere, drug dealing and prostitution are viewed up high as a valid part of the economy as much as being a doctor or a teacher. You will get personal and social fallout, and then people up high treat the results of the culture they created like this.

Bring on Dickens and Hugo.

How many people are sleeping on the streets though?

I'm from that area and have never been aware of a problem.

This is a hugely biased report, the concern is over the professional beggars who have homes and make their money from begging, including using children to ask for money as they're 'more successful'. With the amount of tourists expected to be present for the wedding, it's as much a safety precaution as it is 'ethnic cleansing'. They shouldn't be shuttled to other towns/cities but equally the issue of people being robbed at the Rio Olympics was due to similar issues, local criminals knowingly targeting tourists.

You can easily check crime stats and local policing priorities for individual neighbourhoods:

Windsor Central policing priority issued 10th November 2017:

Vagrants - Dramatic increase in Vagrants (Begging/Street Drinking/Drug Use)

^Action taken:
We will deal with individuals with regards to their:-
Welfare, Housing, Dependencies
With the view to removing them from the streets and integrating them back into civilised society^

Actioned 10 November, 2017
www.police.uk/thames-valley/N394/priorities/

LakieLady I agree with you, that would be awesome. Have you read any of Gabor Mate's books? He works with drug users in Canada and has written eloquently about the effects of zero tolerance vs harm reduction.

Meghan and Harry could build a home for the homeless in Windsor.The Royal family visit the homeless, such a Centrepoint, but they do not atively build anything. Why not? The Royal family only "front" charities but do not put any money in to drive policies forward. Charles is more worried about plants than people.

Megan and Harry could build a home for the homeless in Windsor and there would still be rough sleepers on the streets for the reasons mentioned above.

Lakielady that's an interesting proposal and part of me feels that if that's what people want to do to themselves then carry on. I personally feel if this happened there would be less of a problem maybe in the same way as smoking.
But I don't think that all street homeless are on drugs, I've seen people on drugs and not all the homeless near my work look like that.

I just heard someone from windsor council on radio 4.

He was awful, truly awful, he refered to the homeless as beggars and vagrants and made a lot of horrible comments.
He claimed that they had a shelter so 100% of homeless should be off the street, and anyone on the street was there intentionally.

then they had a guy form shelter on. He pointed out that the homeless in windsor were being offered rat infested flats in Southwark, and surprise, surprise not all of them wanted to go there.

Then he also pointed out that the shelter wasn't open to everyone!

Do you have figures to support that because my experience is kind of the opposite - lots of people end up on the streets because of existing problems w drugs/alcohol/mental health (which then spiral out of control because life on the streets is so unrelentingly horrific). I actually think the teenage homeless (where yes homelessness often leads to drug/alcohol misuse and mh problems) are the exception to this rule (although then again some teenagers are thrown out of home for "going off the rails" which often involves substance misuse). Would be genuinely interested in some stats.

We didn't have any visible homeless people in our town until a few years ago. Almost overnight gangs of men appeared sleeping next to the cashpoints, watching the small shop keepers and giving the nod when they were busy and going in and stealing stuff.

One guy was interviewed by local news about his harsh life on the streets, but this was folllowed up by reports from his friends, family and charity workers who all said he has repeatedly being supported, can be housed and there is no reason for him to be on the streets.

His choice so not my problem.

As for Windsor, I agree, the homeless should be airbrushed out along with other unsightly areas. Harry is very popular and Meghan will bring in a large US interest so Windsor should be shown at it's best.

Yes, let's carry on ignoring the vulnerable in our country so the Americans feel comfortable. What a shame none of the money their interest generates will filter down to the most needy in our country.

I agree, the homeless should be airbrushed out along with other unsightly areas

I have no words...

I don't think its for the royals at all, the princes have been visiting the homeless in shelters since they were tiny. Of course they know about homeless people, as does Megan.

Its for the tourism for the wedding, the spectators etc.

I dont like this sort of thing however, if people are being forced to cash points etc - get more police on the ground to stop it.
I think this would be a good day for the homeless in terms of making money, leave them be or help them.

There are homeless vulnerable people in every country - I saw more in New York than ever seen in London.

More everywhere in fact.

Its how we deal with those people that show what sort of society we are. I agree air brushing them out is nasty. I am talking about genuine homeless people there because of mental health issues, addiction, NOT proffessional beggars.

Wouldn't it be nice if Harry and Meghan thought, I know - why don't we share our day with the people who are fucking paying for it?

They are paying for it themselves

I live in Windsor and have done all my life. In the last couple of years rough sleepers have appeared - I never saw anyone homeless before, and I imagine they were elsewhere. Now they are opposite the castle, along peascod street (main shopping street) with built-up, almost shanty areas in bus stops and shop fronts. It is utterly bizarre and wrong that in one of the richest towns in Britain there are people sleeping on the street outside Molton Brown and Windsor Castle
I don't know what the answer is - and I don't have a decent answer when my DCs ask about these people. Some people say they are scum who choose to sleep on the street and refuse offers of help as they are making a fortune fleecing the rich tourists. Others say they are to be pitied.
My feeling is that some of them are probably chancers but, above all, I have a warm, safe house and a bed to sleep in and they are out side with all associated dangers. So for that reason alone I feel sorry for them and ashamed that we have this problem in 2018 and in such a hugely affluent town.
But what's the answer?

When I say bizarre and wrong that they are outside Molton Brown I mean, of course, that it's incongruous that such a rich town (hence Molton Brown example, soaps for £25) has people with nothing sleeping on its streets. Rich/poor divide at its extreme.

The homeless situation is not quite as clear cut as it might at first appear.
A lot of the so called 'homeless' are actually not homeless at all, in fact they can make several hundred a day by pretending to be.
They are bused in from where they are living, taken to an affluent town where they proceed to play the part.

Others of course are homeless because of their lifestyle choices, ie alcoholism or drug taking.

We shouldn't fall for all the cries of anguish from the left wing bleeding hearts brigade.

Others of course are homeless because of their lifestyle choices, ie alcoholism or drug taking.

I see, so young adults who have been thrown out of their homes, women escaping DV, people evicted by landlords, ex military etc, all of these people are homeless due to their lifestyle choice?

I wouldn't wish it on anyone, and I'm sure there are plenty of people on here who are one mishap away from becoming homeless, but you keep up with your daily mail readership and pretend it's all an illusion.

dingoatemybaby Interested to know what support you would have appreciated/needed. I find it heartbreaking when you read about people in care being chucked out at 18 and left to stand on their own two feet without the back up of a loving family.