Homeless... yet we're attacked and abused

Beaten, kicked and set on fire.Mirror’s dossier of despair

- AMY SHARPE and HOLLIE BONE

HOMELESS people sleeping on the street are routinely beaten, robbed and subjected to a range of humiliating attacks, a Mirror probe has revealed.

We joined outreach teams in London, Manchester and Leeds after it emerged 309,000 people will be homeless this Christmas, 40,000 more than last year.

At least three people have died in freezing weather in recent weeks and many more are feared to be at risk.

But it's not just sub-zero temperatures they have to contend with.

A survey by homeless charity Crisis has found that nine out of 10 have endured physical or verbal abuse.

We uncovered disturbing stories from those too terrified to sleep for fear of being attacked - including reports of people being set on fire, threatened with knives and even killed.

Claire Hopkins, of support charity St Mungo's, said: "It's a huge problem. We've had stories of assault, verbal abuse, lots of theft of belongings and people being urinated on.

In 70% of cases the person responsible was a passer-by.

Other culprits include security guards, business owners and fellow homeless people.

According to Shelter, even in the depths of winter more than 3,000 people sleep rough in London on any given night, 26% up on a year ago. Soaring rents, prices and no-fault evictions are blamed for the figures.

WHACKED

A rough sleeper in Manchester told us that he found his friend frozen to death in a doorway two weeks ago. It followed a similar incident in the city, and one in Beeston, Notts.