Freezing temperatures and spending cuts will hit those at rock bottom
GOVERNMENT spending cuts will hit homeless charities this winter, making it more difficult for them to help the most vulnerable, East End housing charity Providence Row has warned.
The cuts kick in as the UK is in the grip of arctic conditions and hundreds of homeless men and women are living rough on the streets of London.
Providence Row, based in Spitalfields’ Wentworth Street, has been hit by a 40 per cent cut in funding which it uses to provide immediate relief to rough sleepers as well as helping them back into the community.
From January, the charity says it will be forced to restructure its services and make redundancies to make savings.
Jo Ansell, chief executive of the charity, said: “We are seriously concerned about people being homeless in these temperatures.
You may also want to watch:
“Severe weather shelters are opened by local authorities only when the temperature hits zero but when it’s two degrees outside it can feel like minus four with the wind.
“We do everything we can to help people in these conditions but this relief costs money and we cannot provide it without funding.”
Most Read
- 1 Cops break Covid-19 rules to have haircuts at Bethnal Green police station
- 2 Murder arrest after woman stabbed to death in Whitechapel this morning
- 3 Lovely Day for Aldgate School picked to sing on Billy Ocean's new single
- 4 Police e-fit expert retiring after 15 years at Bethnal Green
- 5 Covid hero who did charity walk in Bow aged 100 now has vaccine
- 6 Fury as family homes vanish when Isle of Dogs landlord converts to bedsits
- 7 Man sentenced after teenage boy groomed on Snapchat to sell heroin
- 8 Two men arrested after police officers assaulted in Limehouse rave
- 9 'Racist consultation' protest rejected on Tower Hamlets street closures as Labour sticks to its manifesto
- 10 Covid vaccination hub opening in Westfield next week
In the comprehensive spending review the Government relaxed protection of the �100m Homelessness Grant which helps to fund homelessness charities. The cut comes into force as Christmas services for homeless people close and the charity sees a surge in numbers.
Last year 3,763 people slept rough on London’s streets.