Brother, can you spare a barcode swipe ? . . .
HOMELESS people are wearing barcodes around their necks in an attempt to increase donations as use of cash declines, under an Oxford University-backed initiative.
A project, called Greater Change, sees homeless people handed a QR code, similar to the kind issued for online tickets.
Passers-by who wish to give money but do not have any change in their pocket can scan the code using their smartphone, and make an online payment.
The donation goes into an account which is managed by a case worker, who ensures that the money is spent on agreed targets, such as saving for a rental deposit or a new passport.
“The problem we’re trying to solve is that we live in an increasingly cashless society and as well as this when people give they worry about what this money might be spent on,” Alex Mccallion, founder of Greater Change, told the BBC.
“So the solution we’ve come up with is a giving mechanism through your smartphone with a restrictive fund.”
When you scan the barcode on your smartphone, a profile of the homeless person appears. This tells you more about their circumstances, such as how they became homeless or what their job used to be.
The project, which is being trialled in Oxford, is supported by Oxford University Innovation and Oxford’s Said Business School.
Neil Coyle MP, the Labour co-chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Ending Homelessness, said: “Necessity has again become the mother of invention and now there is an app to help generate more public donations to homeless people.
“This intervention should not be necessary, but with a Government ignoring the scale of the problem, any extra donations may help homeless people directly.”
He added that homelessness has increased in recent years, and the app will not help address the broader issues such as a lack of drug and alcohol cessation programmes, affordable housing and mental healthcare.