Homeless charities in South Yorkshire: Sleeping rough 'not a lifestyle choice'
It's following comments made by the Home Secretary over the weekend
Homeless charities across South Yorkshire & North Derbyshire tell us 'it's ridiculous' for anyone to suggest that sleeping rough is a 'lifestyle choice'.
It comes after the Home Secretary - Suella Braverman - made the remarks while discussing the issue online earlier this month.
Adie Flute runs the Rucksack Project in Barnsley - who support people in the town without a home.
He says many factors can lead to people ending up on the streets:
"There are things like marriage breakdowns, family breakdowns, mental health issues, no fault evictions and the spiralling cost-of-living crisis.
"So, there are plenty of potential factors which are not all entirely under somebodies' control.
"To call homelessness a 'lifestyle choice' is just ridiculous.
"It's not a lifestyle anybody would choose to have.
"I feel it shows a deep lack of humanity, empathy, and understanding."
Meanwhile, 119 council leaders have signed a letter to the Chancellor calling on him to bolster the support available to homeless people in his upcoming autumn statement later this month.