'Day to day survival': Rough sleepers open up about life on streets of Walsall
Rough sleepers in Walsall have told the Express & Star of their day-to-day fight for survival on the streets.
The latest figures, from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, show that 109 households in Walsall were estimated to be homeless, up from 88 the year prior.
However, the area's rough sleepers think that this doesn't paint a vivid enough picture of the extent of the homeless issue in the borough and the effort they have to go through just to get a bed for the night.
Damian Hull, 25, from Walsall, was kicked out of his house after an argument with his parents over rent payments. He thinks homelessness is more of an issue than it appears.
"The numbers don't really sell it though do they, they don't really show what is like having to sleep on the streets or what it takes to get into safe housing," he said.
"It's really hard out there. I mean even begging can be dangerous. If you beg in the wrong area, someone could really hurt you, even other homeless - they get territorial."
