‘Every death is a real human tragedy’

Canterbury has one of the highest death tolls for homeless people in the country, stark figures from the Office for National Statistics reveal.

The city was the fifth worst place in England and Wales for deaths of rough sleepers in 2017, with seven fatalities per 100,000 people.

Across Kent, the number of people dying on the streets has doubled over five years, from 10 in 2013 to 20 in 2017.

The figures, released this week, are the first published breakdown of homeless deaths by local authority area.

ONS spokesman Ben Humberstone said: “Every one of these deaths is a real human tragedy and understanding where these deaths occur is particularly poignant.

“While the worst affected areas change from one year to the next, the figures show that the deprivation level of an area has a real impact.

“Many more people die homeless in the most deprived areas of England and Wales and 95% of the deaths are in urban areas rather than rural areas.”

Canterbury-based homelessness charity Catching Lives told the Gazette of a worrying increase in the number of rough sleepers or formerly homeless people losing their lives in the city. Last year, 12 people helped by the charity are known to have died.

Manager Terry Gore said he believed all of the deaths were linked to the person’s time on the streets.

They included Shelly Pollard, 41, who died of a heroin overdose and health complications after collapsing in the High Street in March.

In the wake of Shelly’s death, Mr Gore said more outreach services taking medical help to homeless people were needed.

“That’s the only thing that would have made a difference,” he said. “It links back to the same thing - services. In the last 10 years, services have been cut and cut and cut. Not only those for rough sleepers and homeless people, but services that affect us all.”