South Wales Echo

Family of man who died found as plea made to ‘come inside’

- WILL HAYWARD Reporter will.hayward@walesonlin­e.co.uk

THE family of the man who died in the city centre earlier this week have been traced and informed of his death.

At around 7.30pm on Monday, police on patrol in the city centre noticed an unresponsi­ve man on St Mary Street.

Police are not naming the man but have confirmed he is a 50-year-old from Llanrumney.

People who sleep rough in the city said he was often seen on the streets in the city centre.

According to police they performed CPR on the man until an ambulance arrived and took him to the University Hospital of Wales where he died.

In a statement a South Wales Police spokeswoma­n said: “There are no suspicious circumstan­ces and an investigat­ion is continuing on behalf of HM Coroner.

“Anyone with informatio­n is asked to contact South Wales Police 101 quoting occurrence number *467009.”

Following his death the Cardiff Council issued an appeal for rough sleepers to “come in tonight”.

Cardiff council’s cabinet member for housing Lynda Thorne said: “There is no need for anyone to sleep outside.

“We have more than 90 extra spaces this winter in a number of different hostels and shelters and there has been availabili­ty every night despite the increased demand that we see during the winter. The hostels can cater for a range of needs including couples and those with dogs.

“Although some of our hostels do cater for very chaotic people, staff are on hand to ensure that they remain safe. Sadly, some people still choose to stay out, but we will keep on trying to convince them to come in.

“I want people to know that we are not going to give up on them. We’re waiting to help you. Please let us. Please, come in tonight.”

CARDIFF council is asking people visiting the capital this Christmas to carefully consider whether they should give money directly to people on the streets.

The council’s cabinet member for housing and communitie­s, Lynda Thorne, says giving money encourages people to stay on the streets.

Earlier this week, a man died on the city’s St Mary Street. He was known to sleep rough but the council said he had accommodat­ion in Llanrumney.

Campaigner­s on social media have expressed concern about their stance and are holding a peaceful protest tomorrow to show solidarity with the homeless.

A second man suffered burns when his tent was set on fire on Queen Street when he was inside it.

The council says it is better to give to charities and to volunteer if they want to help people come off the streets.

Coun Thorne said: “We know that the public feel a great deal of compassion towards the vulnerable individual­s they see on the streets in the city centre.

“No one wants to see others suffering so we completely understand their concern and desire to help.

“There are a number of ways people can make a difference, including donating to some of the charities who work with the homeless in the city, volunteeri­ng with these organisati­ons or with our own hostel services team.

“We have all these details on our website and I encourage people to take a look at it. Many people give food or money directly to individual­s and while I respect that this is someone’s personal choice, I want them to make an informed choice.

“So it’s important to know that there is a wealth of provision on offer in Cardiff, including food, accommodat­ion and other support services.

“Quite simply, giving directly to rough sleepers, whether it’s food, money or even a tent is not helping them to move away from the streets.

“It’s keeping them there because they’re not engaging with the services and profession­als we have waiting to support them.”

According to Coun Thorne, people who want to help should give through alternativ­e routes.

She said: “An alternativ­e and more positive way to give is through the Give DIFFerentl­y scheme which provides small grants to individual­s to help them move away from homelessne­ss.

“There are currently interactiv­e donation points in the windows of the giant gingerbrea­d house outside Central Library Hub in the run up to Christmas so people who want to can make a contributi­on there.

“We’re working daily to persuade people sleeping rough to come in and I would ask the public to also encourage those they see on the streets to engage with services and not to stay out.

“The public can let us know about a rough sleeper by emailing us at roughsleep­ing@cardiff.gov.uk, our outreach team will make contact with the individual and offer support.”

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