A HARD-hitting campaign has been launched to tackle beggars in York after the number of complaints about them soared.

Safer York Partnership has launched a controversial "killing with kindness" poster campaign - urging people not to give money to beggars - in a bid to tackle the increasing problem.

Safer York director Jane Mowat said: "It's difficult to measure the number of people begging but we know it's an increasing problem because we've seen it. We've also had information that people are coming into York to beg.

"The PCSOs patrolling the city centre said they were coming across an awful lot of beggars, and in places where we hadn't seen them before, and that was why we launched the campaign.

"York attracts around four million tourists a year visiting the city to enjoy the many attractions, unique history, architecture and, of course, the shops. However, strolling through the streets, figures hunched in shop doorways or on blankets by cashpoints have become all too familiar a sight.

"Government research shows that only around a quarter of those begging rely on this as their sole source of income. This means that three-quarters do not.

"In recent years, local and national research has shown that the majority of those who beg use alcohol and drugs, including Class A drugs such as crack cocaine and heroin. Begging is often undertaken primarily to support problematic drug use."

One report states that 74 per cent of those who beg have been dealt with by the criminal justice system for committing offences.

However, due to the nature of their lifestyle, many also become victims of crime themselves with 68 per cent having been a victim of violence or assault.

Ms Mowat said: "If begging is not managed, it creates a climate in which other crime can flourish.

"So if these people are vulnerable and or engaged in other criminal activities, why do people give them money?

"Over and above a general lack of awareness of the lifestyle that beggars may be leading, the decision to give is based on the individual's belief that this person is in need.

"It is clear the public need to become educated about the facts relating to where their money goes every time they throw a pound coin into an offered cap."

This is the ethos behind the Killing With Kindness initiative, which aims to educate visitors and residents that the money they give directly to beggars may be spent on drugs or alcohol.

She said: "It will encourage those who wish to help, to give through registered charities or via the alternative giving boxes located across the city."

As part of the campaign support agencies are working alongside the police to engage with those begging and offer them the opportunity to seek help to address their lifestyle problems.