Summary

It’s hard for anyone to stay off anything in this situation. So, don’t be quick to judge until you’ve been in this situation. Homelessness Nottingham Drugs Talk. Vlog

Hi everyone! It’s a Friday night in November, and it’s damn cold here in Nottingham. We’re going to have a mooch about and see if we can get some people to talk about their experiences.

I’ve been coming to Nottingham for the past few days, trying to get people used to my face. What struck me is that Nottingham isn’t a particularly large city. I’m from the southeast, used to London, which is huge—Nottingham, not that big.

From where I’ve been speaking to some people, I’ve got an estimate that there are about 100 people on the streets in the city center. Now, from what I’m used to dealing with police and the council, it’s a lot worse here from what I’ve found out.

If you’re on private property, you’re somewhat safe. But if you’re on Council property, no matter where you are, the council will come along and bin your stuff the minute your back’s turned. That’s why you see homeless people in doorways.

I was in a doorway, an empty shop. I got permission from the people who owned it to be there. I had a tent that afforded me some privacy and kept the elements off me. But no tents here. If you put a tent in a doorway, they see it as waste, and the moment your back’s turned, it’ll be gone, even though it’s on private property.

The same situation applies with the police. When your back’s turned, they’ll bin your stuff. Homelessness is not tolerated here one bit, according to what I’ve been told by a few people. This isn’t my experience; it’s just what a few people have told me.

Anyway, we’re going to go to the city center so you can see for yourself firsthand the numbers I’m talking about. We’ll chat with some people if they want to share their experiences.

Now, in the homeless community, there will always be an issue with substance misuse. For those of you who don’t understand, let me try and clarify this for you. If you’re on the streets in this freezing cold, tired, hungry, getting abuse from the public, always under the threat of violence, and dealing with your stuff going missing, it’s very, very hard not to end up taking something just to afford you a little break from the situation you’re in. I need people to try and understand this. If you were in this situation, you would find it hard not to drink or do something just to get a break.

What’s quite prevalent up here is spice. For those who don’t know what it is, it’s a synthetic cannabinoid. Something I’ve never done in my life and never will do because the idea scares the hell out of me, seeing what it does to people. From where I’ve been speaking to some people, there’s a lot of individuals who have given up completely on spice. They’re not coming back, and it’s sad.

Before anyone starts firing comments about judging those with substance issues, understand this: when you’re on the streets, you’re targeted by drug dealers. They come up to you, ask if you want to buy anything, offer free testers, and tell you that if you get them some numbers, they’ll give you some. It’s hard for anyone to stay off anything in this situation. So, don’t be quick to judge until you’ve been in this situation.

Okay, I’ll stop here. When we go into the city center, I’m going to show you what it’s like here.