Has City of York Council really thought through giving permission to open the new night shelter at Leeman Road?

As I understand it there is a strict policy at the Peasholme night shelter, therefore any problem cases will not be allowed in but sent to the Leeman Road site. Many of these are drunks and drug addicts. Yes, the essential bottle of spirits is taken away for safe keeping to be returned in the morning.

The centre is only a few minutes away from York Railway Station and the Memorial Gardens. These people get there just in time to "welcome" incoming tourists arriving from far and wide often by coach.

What state they will be in when the tourists gather to be picked up remains to be seen, alternatively they could spend a hard day's begging in the city centre. Swearing and verbal abuse does happen, I have witnessed it. The centre at Leeman Road is a short-term solution to a long-term problem. Yes, give the homeless support and housing but under a managed long-term programme. The only signal this sends out to Britain's homeless is... come to York.

R D Wilson,

Elmfield Terrace,

Malton Road, York.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.