The leader of a volunteer group who turned his life around after losing everything to a devastating drug addiction said he feels "heartbroken" by the number of people still sleeping rough on the streets of Liverpool.
Brian Phillips, 60, lost everything when his benefits were sanctioned due to his 30-year addiction, and he ended up living in a doorway on Old Hall Street in 2017.
As the cold weather crept in, he turned in desperation to Kingsway House, a temporary homeless shelter in Hatton Garden, which he said helped him make the changes he needed to overcome his drug problems, and helped him into permanent housing.
READ MORE: Concerns over lack of Liverpool homeless shelter as winter bites
Now he fears others won't be so lucky, as Liverpool no longer has a single central shelter, and homeless people instead take refuge in doorways and in tents on the streets.
He said: "I'm surprised nobody has died before now. The past few days have been milder, but we're expecting it to get a lot colder. I know everybody on the streets, I'm friends with them, so it's devastating to see them that way."
Brian, who now runs the Mr Old Hall Street Kitchen, a volunteer group dedicated to feeding and clothing Liverpool's homeless population, said the loss of several shelters over the years meant those living on the streets turned to alcohol or drugs to cope with the terrible conditions.
Kingsway House shut down in February 2018. Another overnight homeless shelter, Labre House in Camden Street, shut down in 2020, as did the Cotton Street Project, which provided beds to 14 people inside a renovated warehouse.
In March 2021, Liverpool City Council approved plans for a £10.4m accommodation centre with 60 self-contained en-suite bedrooms, kitchen and lounge facilities and up to 40 one-bed apartments to be set up in a student housing block on Smithdown Lane. However, the plans were thrown out earlier this year and government funding was withdrawn.
A council spokesperson said: "It is deeply unfortunate that the council was unable to progress with the Smithdown Lane project. The funding timescales were very tight and once it became clear that building could not be used, the council was unable to identify an alternative building within the deadline."
Brian said: "There needs to be a place for the homeless to go. A lot of them are suffering from addiction, and that needs to be addressed. You need to make them feel like part of a family and feel loved.
"When Cotton Street was still going, homeless people lived there like a family. The feeling of being together, supporting each other helped so much. The difference it was making was unbelievable.
"The last night shelter we had was Labre House, which is literally standing empty. Right now, there's nowhere for anyone to go at night.
"It's heartbreaking. I've been there and I know what it's like. They're not just homeless people, they're family to me. I've known them for five years, I've seen how good they can do and how they get let down."
Currently, rough sleepers are offered emergency overnight accommodation by the Whitechapel Centre when a severe weather warning is issued, meaning temperatures are predicted to drop to 2C or below.
Mr Old Hall Street Kitchen volunteer Lisa Mansfield said: "I've been out over the past few weeks, and people are left on the streets in temperatures you wouldn't leave a dog in, just left there with nowhere to go.
"One night the temperatures were something like -7C and there's people sitting in doorways, freezing cold, asking for spare jumpers, spare sleeping bags. You can't give them everything they need. People will die on the streets left out in these conditions."
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