Groundswell is one of the founding members of the Charter to End Rough Sleeping in London. Groundswell’s Listen Up! is a lived experience-led project, championing major change towards better healthcare access and life expectancy for people facing homelessness. This first Listen Up! article comes from Listen Up community reporter, John Mpaso, on the topic of collective responsibility.
Hello everyone, my name is John Mpaso, and I am a Volunteer Community Reporter for the Listen Up! project at Groundswell. In this short report, I would like to talk about the importance of social responsibility. I have been contemplating about the many changes that are taking place across society and how these changes are affecting people.
One of the biggest changes that I am concerned about is the rise in rough sleeping across the UK, especially in the capital of London. According to Combined Homelessness and Information Network (CHAIN) figures released in January, the numbers of people sleeping rough on London’s streets are at their highest level in ten years. Considering the cost-of-living crisis, it will be no surprise that more people will face sleeping rough in London and across the country in the coming years.
My question now is, do we have a social responsibility to do something about this?
I believe we do, as homelessness is something that I have experienced, and it is through great people, charities, and community organisations that I was able to escape the pain and isolation of it. The accommodation that I received from the YMCA and the counselling and support I received from their youth workers guided me through my challenges as a young person, steering me too the stability that I have today.
Social housing and support workers are the first and last line of defence in keeping the stability within a community. They help save and build lives. As such, I believe it is essential that we support these services to keep the integrity of our society by keeping all the people in it safe.
From my experiences, I learnt that these great people and organisations did not have many resources to deal with the high demand of people seeking accommodation. They need more funding and access to specialised training to tackle the many challenges that come with rough sleeping and to help the people that experience it appropriately.
It is essential that that we create a culture of social responsibility in London and across the country, to face the great challenge together as a society.
References
You can also read this post on the Charter to End Rough Sleeping’s website here
