Give money to charities not beggars, says PCSO

PCSO Steve Hart has been awarded the British Empire Medal for his services to policing

A Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) who has been looking out for Sheffield's homeless for two decades has called on people not to give money to people begging for cash.

PCSO Steve Hart patrols the city centre every morning, checking on the welfare of those on the streets and encouraging them to access support so they can stop begging.

PCSO Hart said donations to agencies and charities would better help those on the streets in Sheffield and other cities.

"I wouldn't advise giving money to anybody who's begging. People find it difficult to grasp that, for some, it's a lifestyle choice. That might not be something people want to hear, but I work with these people day in, day out," he said.

PCSO Hart, 61, who has been awarded the British Empire Medal for his services to policing and his work with the homeless, said giving money to homeless people could be "enabling" their current lifestyle.

Instead, he called on people to give money to agencies working to help them off the streets.

Former homeless man Andy says begging is part of the problem

One former homeless man, Andy, who was on the streets for a year, said he believed begging exacerbated the problem.

"I hate to say it, but I think probably about 50% are fake homeless," he explained.

"They are technically still homeless, but they choose to be homeless [to beg]. They can go back home if they want to."

However, Katie, who PCSO Hart recently helped off the streets and into supported accommodation, said she disagreed with the officer's stance on giving money to beggars.

"People need to earn money when they're homeless. They've got nothing," she said.

"What are they meant to do? I've done it myself."

But Katie said despite not agreeing with him on this issue, she still thought PCSO Hart was "brilliant".

She said he had visited her and her partner Paul every morning "to make sure we're all right".

"I don't like coppers, but Steve is different," she said.

"He actually listens to us. He's just a nice person."

PCSO Hart helped Katie into supported accommodation

Tim Renshaw, chief executive of Sheffield homeless charity The Cathedral Archer Project, admitted there was no easy answer to the age-old question of how best to help the homeless.

"If you are talking to people who have lived experience on the streets, some do say people are going to get money for drugs and alcohol one way or another and if they are on the streets, they will probably need the drugs or alcohol to survive," he said.

But Mr Renshaw likened begging to a full-time job, adding: "When people get into a begging lifestyle, they haven't got time to work with the agencies that will help them out of that lifestyle.

"That means we have little chance of working with these people to change their life."

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