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Planning around a London cathedral highlights a common problem
The homeless are to be "designed out" of Westminster as part of the Council's new £4m Action Plan to regenerate the area surrounding the Cathedral and prevent anti-social behaviour.
Opposition has, broadly, been overruled. Members of London soup-run charity Streetlytes UK claim their voices have been drowned out by the noise of bigger business interests.
Key stakeholders - including Westminster Cathedral, The Passage day centre and local businesses, many of which the council hopes will match-fund its £2.8m - are enthusiastic about the proposed developments to Westminster Piazza and Wilcox Square.
The draft action plan, which was open to public consultation on the Council's website, stated: "We will ensure that designing out crime is one of the key priorities when assessing and developing the new design proposals for both the Piazza and Wilcox Place.
"Though the driving force behind both briefs is to promote good urban and landscape design principles so as to create exciting new public paces, it would be negligent not to recognise how design could help reduce or eradicate certain types of anti-social behaviour".
The report goes further stating that soup kitchens, in particular, create problems. Rudi Richardson, a former drug addict and rough sleeper, is the executive director of Streetlytes UK, whose soup run provides food, clothing and company for homeless people in Westminster. Two months ago, Council authorities moved his soup run on from the Westminster Piazza, where it had been operating for 16 months, to the less visible spot behind House of Fraser shop 500 metres up the road. He claims the move was motivated by business self-interest. "I didn't feel I had a leg to stand on confronting these people, even though our motives are right and we're trying to do good," he says. "The council weren't interested. We are part of the Soup Run Forum and want to find a unified solution that incorporates homelessness, but the Council is only interested in working with building-based agencies.
"They think we don't have the experience or the knowledge, but we are a group made up of ex-homeless and ex-addicts who can connect with street homeless as we've been there."
Concern remains about where those moved on would go. There will always be a hardcore of street homeless who will not feel comfortable engaging with services, Mr Richardson explains, and his organisation attempts to meet people on their level. "I'm not trying to compare services. It's not that one is better than another: we need them all," he says. "I just want to work in partnership with them when trying to find solutions" .
The Passage is one such building-based homelessness charity that has been involved in developing the proposals. Mick Clarke, its chief executive, dismisses any suggestion that homeless people were being unfairly marginalised: "The Passage supports the redevelopment of the Piazza, from a viewpoint of it being a welcoming and vibrant place for all the community, but would never support an aim of simply 'designing out' rough sleeping, as such an aim would be shortsighted and would simply ‚Äö?Ñ??move on' rough sleeping to another area.
"The Passage would never support legislation that outlawed rough sleeping. We also fed in [to the consultation] that The Passage would never support street cleansing being used to move rough sleepers on."
The Council's latest count, which was independently verified, found 86 rough sleepers in Westminster, plus 25 rough sleepers from A2 and A8 (Eastern European) countries. It denies any intention of dispersing these people, who may appear unsightly to the 8,000 visitors who pass through the Cathedral's doors each week.
A spokesperson says: "The Cathedral Piazza is a world-class square, and the Draft Action Plan is aimed at ensuring this is recognised. We have no plans to target rough sleepers in the area in an aggressive way." Cathedral authorities say they are keen to support all those working with the needy, and cite their help to The Passage in nearby Carlisle Place. "The cathedral has always had great compassion for working with some of the most disadvantaged in our society, including homeless people," Mr Clarke agrees.
An independent survey commissioned by single person homeless charity Crisis into the effects of soup kitchens is due out early this month (July); many hope it will provide some clarity about the best way forward. But the researchers at the London School of Economics say the results are not conclusive. "Soup kitchens serve a purpose, and are not all good or all bad," says one LSE spokesperson. "Westminster won't be able to use the result to say they should be moved on."
June – July 2024 : Reflections
CONTENTS
BACK ISSUES
- Issue 150 : June – July 2024 : Reflections
- Issue 149 : April – May 2024 : Compassion
- Issue 148 : February – March 2024 : The little things
- Issue 147 : December 2023 – January 2024 : Next steps
- Issue 146 : October 2023 – November 2023 : Kind acts
- Issue 145 : August 2023 – September 2023 : Mental health
- Issue 144 : June 2023 – July 2023 : Community
- Issue 143 : April 2023 - May 2023 : Hope springs
- Issue 142 : February 2023 - March 2023 : New Beginnings
- Issue 141 : December 2022 - January 2023 : Winter Homeless
- Issue 140 : October - November 2022 : Resolve
- Issue 139 : August - September 2022 : Creativity
- Issue 138 : June - July 2022 : Practical advice
- Issue 137 : April - May 2022 : Connection
- Issue 136 : February - March 2022 : RESPECT
- Issue 135 : Dec 2021 - Jan 2022 : OPPORTUNITY
- Issue 134 : September-October 2021 : Losses and gains
- Issue 133 : July-August 2021 : Know Your Rights
- Issue 132 : May-June 2021 : Access to Healthcare
- Issue 131 : Mar-Apr 2021 : SOLUTIONS
- Issue 130 : Jan-Feb 2021 : CHANGE
- Issue 129 : Nov-Dec 2020 : UNBELIEVABLE
- Issue 128 : Sep-Oct 2020 : COPING
- Issue 127 : Jul-Aug 2020 : HOPE
- Issue 126 : Health & Wellbeing in a Crisis
- Issue 125 : Mar-Apr 2020 : MOVING ON
- Issue 124 : Jan-Feb 2020 : STREET FOOD
- Issue 123 : Nov-Dec 2019 : HOSTELS
- Issue 122 : Sep 2019 : DEATH ON THE STREETS
- Issue 121 : July-Aug 2019 : INVISIBLE YOUTH
- Issue 120 : May-June 2019 : RECOVERY
- Issue 119 : Mar-Apr 2019 : WELLBEING
- Issue 118 : Jan-Feb 2019 : WORKING HOMELESS
- Issue 117 : Nov-Dec 2018 : HER STORY
- Issue 116 : Sept-Oct 2018 : TOILET TALK
- Issue 115 : July-Aug 2018 : HIDDEN HOMELESS
- Issue 114 : May-Jun 2018 : REBUILD YOUR LIFE
- Issue 113 : Mar–Apr 2018 : REMEMBRANCE
- Issue 112 : Jan-Feb 2018
- Issue 111 : Nov-Dec 2017
- Issue 110 : Sept-Oct 2017
- Issue 109 : July-Aug 2017
- Issue 108 : Apr-May 2017
- Issue 107 : Feb-Mar 2017
- Issue 106 : Dec 2016 - Jan 2017
- Issue 105 : Oct-Nov 2016
- Issue 104 : Aug-Sept 2016
- Issue 103 : May-June 2016
- Issue 102 : Mar-Apr 2016
- Issue 101 : Jan-Feb 2016
- Issue 100 : Nov-Dec 2015
- Issue 99 : Sept-Oct 2015
- Issue 98 : July-Aug 2015
- Issue 97 : May-Jun 2015
- Issue 96 : April 2015 [Mini Issue]
- Issue 95 : March 2015
- Issue 94 : February 2015
- Issue 93 : December 2014
- Issue 92 : November 2014
- Issue 91 : October 2014
- Issue 90 : September 2014
- Issue 89 : July 2014
- Issue 88 : June 2014
- Issue 87 : May 2014
- Issue 86 : April 2014
- Issue 85 : March 2014
- Issue 84 : February 2014
- Issue 83 : December 2013
- Issue 82 : November 2013
- Issue 81 : October 2013
- Issue 80 : September 2013
- Issue 79 : June 2013
- Issue 78 : 78
- Issue 77 : 77
- Issue 76 : 76
- Issue 75 : 75
- Issue 74 : 74
- Issue 73 : 73
- Issue 72 : 72
- Issue 71 : 71
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- Issue 69 : 69
- Issue 68 : 68
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- Issue 66 : 66
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- Issue 63 : 63
- Issue 62 : 62
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- Issue 58 : 58
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- Issue 56 : 56
- Issue 56 : 56
- Issue 55 : 55
- Issue 54 : 54
- Issue 53 : 53
- Issue 52 : 52
- Issue 51 : 51
- Issue 50 : 50
- Issue 49 : 49
- Issue 48 : 48
- Issue 47 : 47
- Issue 46 : 46
- Issue 45 : 45
- Issue 44 : 44
- Issue 43 : 43
- Issue 42 : 42
- Issue 5 : 05
- Issue 4 : 04
- Issue 2 : 02
- Issue 1 : 01
- Issue 41 : 41
- Issue 40 : 40
- Issue 39 : 39
- Issue 38 : 38
- Issue 37 : 37
- Issue 36 : 36
- Issue 35 : 35
- Issue 34 : 34
- Issue 33 : 33
- Issue 10 : 10
- Issue 9 : 09
- Issue 6 : 06
- Issue 3 : 03
- Issue 32 : 32
- Issue 31 : 31
- Issue 30 : 30
- Issue 29 : 29
- Issue 11 : 11
- Issue 12 : 12
- Issue 13 : 13
- Issue 14 : 14
- Issue 15 : 15
- Issue 16 : 16
- Issue 17 : 17
- Issue 18 : 18
- Issue 19 : 19
- Issue 20 : 20
- Issue 21 : 21
- Issue 22 : 22
- Issue 23 : 23
- Issue 24 : 24
- Issue 25 : 25
- Issue 8 : 08
- Issue 7 : 07
- Issue 26 : 26
- Issue 27 : 27
- Issue 28 : 28
- Issue 1 : 01