Solidarity: outside the Streets Kitchen hub in Seven Sisters Road, Jeremy Corbyn MP with, from left, Jon Glackin, Islington Cllr Diarmaid Ward, Cllr Una O’Halloran, Elodie Berland, and Cllr Kaya Comer-Schwartz

Rough sleeping will always be a terrible visual reminder of the current national “homeless” crisis.

In reality there are many more people experiencing homelessness hidden away or sofa-surfing, squatting or in some form of precarious temporary accommodation across the borough. “Officially” 341 people were seen sleeping rough in Camden at the start of this year until March. The reality on the streets of Camden is grim, it’s particularly deadly as we approach winter.

Last weekend our mobile, small, morning team shared 208 breakfasts in one small area of Camden.

We witness more people, of all ages, waking up on the streets with their tents often torn down by authorities without notice or compassion. People simply trying to survive in a growingly hostile environment.

For over 10 years Streets Kitchen has operated regularly and directly on the streets of Camden and beyond with many others in solidarity with those experiencing homelessness, supplying food, drinks, essential supplies and – more importantly – those little moments of joy.

We have consistently held Camden Council and other authorities to account when they fail in their duties.

People’s very lives are at risk and the stark reality is we have tragically lost far too many friends before their time.

We work closely with, and consult, many organisations locally and nationally on the ground, from other local and national “homeless” service providers to human rights organisations such as Amnesty and Liberty.

For more than four years we have held futile, regular, meetings with the decision-makers among Camden’s homeless services to voice our concerns and those we work with to look at how we can resolve the growing crisis locally.

These peace talks were initiated by the department for levelling up, housing and communities who were somewhat bemused that we could have very successful working relationships with local councils elsewhere but not Camden.

We certainly have what our local MP Sir Keir Starmer likes to refer to as plenty of “skin in the game”.

Disappointingly, though, even with this we have had no response from his offices over the years. Certainly homelessness doesn’t seem to be high on our MP’s list of local priorities.

We were promised immediate action after the national public outrage that arose when this paper, Liberty, and Streets Kitchen highlighted Camden Council and the Metropolitan Police Service’s cruel behaviour at UCH hospital last winter.

The incident, which was caught on film, showed them illegally destroying people’s tents and personal possessions. Although apologies were eventually forthcoming, there were also several face-saving pledges made publicly that have yet to be fulfilled.

Not least of these was to undertake an urgent independent review of Camden’s homeless services which, nine months later, was created in-house, published, and ratified by the council.

This was not what was agreed upon at our well-attended public meeting on November 16.

Camden needs an urgent, independent, appraisal of its homelessness services, not another report rubber-stamped by the council itself. The lack of impartiality in these internal evaluations is not only unprofessional it’s unethical.

Camden Council is failing its most vulnerable residents by avoiding the necessary, constructive criticism from an external review. Other boroughs have always had independent reviews, so why not Camden? To develop trust you simply can’t investigate yourself!

We were also publicly promised that the “homeless forum” would be reinstated, where all local service providers and those working directly on the ground could come together with the council regularly and share concerns and updates while working together for more effective partnership approaches.

Homelessness can never be resolved from behind a desk or on a spreadsheet; but only by engaging on the ground directly with those affected and equipping those who undertake homeless outreach with the right tools, support, and funding to make a significant and urgent difference.

Amid this growing national crisis though we can see signs of hope in other boroughs and much more effective partnerships working in practice, a prime example is our upcoming #StreetsFest in Finsbury Park.

Working closely with Islington, Haringey and Hackney councils, we bring all the essential services together in a fun atmosphere that can effectively support those experiencing homelessness.

We can only hope that one day soon the powers that be will match the drive and passion of so many of our amazing volunteers and the wider Camden community who simply unite in solidarity to support others.

Please get in touch if you want to make that simple difference

https://www.streetskitchen.org/
getinvolved@streetskitchen.org

• Elodie Berland and Jon Glackin are Streets Kitchen coordinators