A rough sleeper has died after being found in Liverpool city centre

A rough sleeper in his forties has died in hospital after being found in a Liverpool city centre gateway. The man, thought to have been found on Victoria Street on Thursday night, was rushed to the Royal for treatment, but later died.

His death followed a night of plummeting temperatures which had dropped to below freezing across Merseyside. It is understood he had pre-existing medical conditions, and his death is not being treated as suspicious.

According to Liverpool Council, a core number of 15 to 20 rough sleepers and homeless are thought to remain on the city’s streets.

The city’s cold weather shelter, operated by the Whitechapel centre, is to open on any night when the temperature is forecast to dip below 2°c, as ordered by Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson last month.

Eleanor, who works at the Whitechapel Centre, told us, “I am absolutely disgusted that another person has lost a life on the streets of Liverpool. I urge everybody to save the no second night out number in their phone and use it when someone is seeping rough, It could save lives.”

Beth, president of the Help the Homeless Society, said, “We are deeply saddened by the news. Now more than ever people need to be vigilant of rough sleepers and contact The Whitechapel Centre’s No Second Night Out number if they see someone on the streets who isn’t accommodated already.

“The socio-economic problems leading to homelessness are entrenched and therefore very difficult to solve – it’s not just a means of finding a roof for someone. We cannot express enough how the best way to help this epidemic is by volunteering your time or money or donations to the Whitechapel centre. They work on finding long term solutions which, as it has become increasingly evident, is what is needed in order to stop people dying on the streets of the world’s sixth richest nation.”

To report a rough sleeper, call 0300 123 2041 or email [email protected], and outreach workers from the Whitechapel Centre will provide a rapid response to support them.