Begging in Leeds: Jess' Story
A Leeds woman has been helping people who beg in the city centre. Twenty-three year old Jess Templemen from Killingbeck collects donated items via her Facebook page. She then spends a few hours each Saturday walking around the streets of the city centre, handing them out to people in need.
The highest number of people Jess has seen in one round is thirty-seven. The fewest is three. She told Radio Aire: “The less people who volunteer their time, the less people I can feed due to being able to carry all the bags.”
Jess has been speaking to Radio Aire as part of a series of special features about the number of people begging in the city. She says she’s seeing more and more on the streets.
“There has been a big increase. More people are losing their jobs and so losing their homes. Some people don’t know where to turn. Some people who do know where to turn don’t get the help they do need.”
It was a quiet day for Jess. “It worries me in case something bad has happened but in a way I try to think they might have been housed. In January we actually lost four people off the streets because of the cold weather. It’s upset me because I’ve fed them, I’ve talked to them but most importantly I’ve been a friend to them and made them feel like a normal person in society.”
Bethan Davies went along on one of Jess's trip around Leeds. You can hear what happened here: