This weekend saw different ways of helping the growing number of homeless people in Salford and Manchester.
In Salford, the Salford Unemployed and Community Resource Centre (SUCRC) is trying to get homeless people to register to vote, using its own address so that a political statement can be made at the ballot box in the local elections.
Anyone who knows of a homeless person who isn't registered can get them to contact SUCRC as soon as possible, as tomorrow is the last day to register. Either call in
at 84-86 Liverpool Road, Eccles M30 0WZ, or phone 0161 789 2999.
Meanwhile, yesterday Party Protest Manchester held a KFC food kitchen in Piccadilly Gardens handing out free meals, while a sound system boomed out tunes. It was followed by a homeless march around the area...
"I think the councillors have listened to us but they tell us there is not a lot they can do because central government are making decisions that leaves them with their hands tied to some extent" explained organiser Emma Mohareb "Despite what they say I think there are loads of things they can do better...I have spoken to Andy Burnham and I don't think he is going to accomplish his mission to stop homelessness by 2020. It's not that I don't trust him, it is more that I don't trust his power.
"I think central government has strings over him" she added "I think moving people out of Manchester city centre where the support is seems crazy. What support are they going to get in places like Chorlton? It won't be as good as if they were central where they can come and get food. When they are in this type of accommodation they don't have money all the time, they will have to wait for their benefits to be set up so they have to come to the street kitchens.
"I'd like to tell Andy to come and work with people like myself and see what we can do, and to ask him if we can speak to someone higher, so they can hear where we are coming from" she explained "We need to speak to central government and they need to listen to people like me who have worked with homeless people for years. I work for free, I don't charge anything, so why not work with people like me to save money?
"I do try to do my best because at the end of the day we need a better country and a better city to live in" she concluded "I don't want my daughter to walk down the street in ten years and it still be a zombie town! Our government has allowed this to happen in one of the richest countries in the world..."
Interview and photos by Steven Speed