“Waiting times mean people disengage. They lose trust and it can mean death.”
“I am reinserting myself into society. I am not invisible.”
“This photo reminds me of how far I’ve come. I once stood on this bridge contemplating jumping off.”
“What kind of government response is it just to block off places where people were sleeping rough? How about giving them a house!”
“It was purely by chance that I got support. I was in the right place at the right time. It shouldn’t be that way.”
“Belgrove hotel: self-referred Wet House. I went there… and I chose to be homeless… Terrible hygiene, rats, diseases.”
“Why in 2019 do we still need the Wayside and the City Mission to be feeding, washing and clothing the homeless? There’s such a huge gap between the people making decisions and those experiencing this.”
“Accessing services can feel deliberately difficult. Like people are trying to stop you from getting help.”
“It breaks up communities. You’re sent somewhere you don’t know and have no friends or family. The impact of that is huge.”
“When you’re homeless, you feel invisible.”
“It’s basic survival.”
“Shelter is the only reason that I am clean and in a tenancy. But the shadows of homelessness are still out there.”
“People are scared of the truth which is why they don’t carry out proper consultation with people with lived experience. They don’t actually want the answers.”
“It’s easy for them to put you down as chaotic. Easier for them to ignore you.”
“When has the Minister of Housing ever been in a homeless hostel or shelter?”
“It’s all about power. Money and greed are everything.”
“People are systematically not told what their rights are.”
“Even the birds can’t sit on it… It’s a metaphor for what the Council provides.”
“There’s a hierarchy in society. Some have. Some don’t.”
“The system breaks people. My first night on the streets. Oh my god. In to the deep dark hole I go again, physically and mentally. The sense of reality hitting every night.”
“There are two homeless deaths a week in Glasgow. But homeless deaths don’t make the papers. They are insignificant.”
“Look what living on the streets has done to me.”
“There should be more opportunities for service users to help others.”
“We need the public to be on our side. I need people with no lived experience of mental health or homelessness services to be on my side. We need to educate the public on social justice issues and discrimination.”
“Why shouldn’t temporary homeless accommodation be in safe areas.”
“Help should always be there no matter who you are.”
“I installed the roof on this building. I became homeless because my landlord became bankrupt.”
“We need to get people with lived experience of homelessness and mental health issues in power.”
