Virus puts homeless shelter under pressure
KENSINGTON and Chelsea is one of the most affected London boroughs in the coronavirus pandemic with 49 of 621 of the cases in the capital
While the majority of the nation can comfortably self-isolate and maintain social distancing at home, London’s homeless population face the difficulty of having nowhere to self-isolate as shelters are forced to turn away guests showing flu-like symptoms. This has presented a great challenge for London homeless shelter, Glass Door, who provide emergency winter shelter for up to 70 individuals a night in Kensington and Chelsea.
Like the rest of the nation, Glass Door is following NHS advice and doing all it can to limit the spread of the infection and therefore have had to deny entry to people showing flulike symptoms.
A spokesperson from Glass Door shared that due to the risk to others they have had to turn away a number of people who now “have nowhere to self-isolate with dignity.”
In a statement, Glass Door chief operating officer, Lucy Abraham said: “We flagged our concerns to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government early on, calling for specific guidance aimed at people without a fixed address who may be “at-risk” of contracting coronavirus.
She added: “As coronavirus spreads, it’s encouraging to hear that the government is now drawing up plans for this eventuality.”
As the nation goes further into lockdown with more school closures being announced in Scotland and Wales, there is an urgency for clearer guidelines on how to manage vulnerable groups such as homeless people.
Monitoring the NHS advice, communicating with other charities and keeping their guidance updated is the best that organisations like Glass Door can do at the current time, but more support is needed.
Ms Abraham said: “We believe that everyone has inherent dignity no matter where they sleep. The voices of those who have nowhere to turn but the streets should be heard in this public health crisis.”
These vulnerable people have no alternative to service Glass Door provides which presents a further public health issue also.
Glass Door has advised that the best way to support homeless people who may be self-isolating is passing on a small gesture such as a kind word, or a smile that could help combat loneliness now more than ever before.
“The coronavirus pandemic reminds us that we are all connected to each other – and that we ignore the most vulnerable in society at risk to all of us,” Ms Abraham added.
“We also urge people not to stockpile and to donate any surplus items to their local homeless charity instead. We are currently struggling to find long-life milk, toilet roll and hand sanitiser for our shelters and keep our ‘things we need’ page updated with items we require: www.glassdoor.org.uk/things-weneed.”