Illustration by John Sadler www.johnsadlerillustration.com 

WE will have all felt the sudden drop in temperature this week as winter sets in, but some more than others.

December is no doubt one of the cruellest months for people on the streets. But hundreds in Camden are living an all round ordeal, a true hand-to-mouth existence.

Few residents will not each day walk past some poor souls surrounded by piles of cardboard, bags and tins; as Shakespeare put it, a looped and windowed raggedness.

These people should be thought of as our neighbours, not some emblem of anti-social behaviour.

Our homeless, those who have fallen through the cracks, those who command the least of our efforts and attention, don’t endear themselves much to politicians. They don’t vote and don’t contribute to the tax base.

The state responds generally by trying to mitigate the damage they appear to cause. We try to move them away from our communal areas, homes and schools.

The manner with which we treat those lost on our streets is a shame to us all. If it takes Christmas to remind us so be it: we are not here to smooth the path of profitable progress but to provide and protect the weakest and most vulnerable in our society.

But with numbers so high as they have been allowed to become, what can anyone do to help? This government is not going to do anything significant and the council has limited resources to provide the kind of real interventions needed to get people off the street, out of addiction and into a secure home.

That is not to downplay the huge amount of well-meaning practical support that goes out to help the most in need at this time of year. Volunteers will join soup kitchens. Groups will go out with warm clothing and food. We open a food bank here, a shelter there.

Charities, which work all the year round, kick into gear around Christmas when public sympathies are at their highest.

Kind-hearted Gail Porter this week backed the campaign from the Single Homelessness Project that is trying to stop people losing their homes in the first place.

SHP estimates that 4,000 people could hit the streets across London in the coming weeks because they are unable to afford rents.

The Local Housing Allowance has not kept pace with inflation but it is clear the government believes those on benefits are already getting too much.

This campaign is in many ways a sign of the times, one that is aiming to prevent more joining the ranks on the streets rather than targeting those already there.