Junkies having sex in sleeping bags on street & using phone boxes as dealing dens are ruining our city… cops do nothing
IT'S a city steeped in history which attracts over one million visitors each year - but Gloucester residents say it's being overrun with junkies and aggressive beggars.
One frustrated local claimed they were shocked and saddened to witness people having sex in a sleeping bag on the street and cooking up heroin in a tent.
The resident, who did not wish to be named, claimed there aren't enough police to combat the growing problem.
They told : “Street drinking has always been a problem in the city centre, but now it is getting worse.
"Agencies should have done something about this a long time ago, but I think now the horse has bolted and it is going to be a struggle to do something about the street drinking and antisocial behaviour.
“I have seen people injecting and having sex on Southgate Street. Further up the street in an alleyway, I have seen people in a tent cooking up heroin.”
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Homeless charity Shelter says its ‘bracing itself’ for a spike in the number of people who will be homeless this winter, with many sleeping on the streets.
The harsh reality is evident on the main streets in the centre of Gloucester City when The Sun visits.
Duvets are piled high in doorways, sleeping bags are laid out on the cold paving slabs and groups of people who appear homeless gather and drink.
A lone woman sits next to the entrance of a shopping centre in the ice-cold winter air with her belongings sat beside her in a black plastic sack, while groups of men stand around in doorways and alleyways.
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Local shopkeepers say street-drinking and anti-social behaviour in the 2,000-year-old city is harming business by deterring people from coming into town.
Matthew Stevens, 57, runs food kiosk King’s Carvery, which has operated in the centre of Eastgate Street for more than three decades.
He said: “I’ve noticed an increase in aggression from homeless people towards everyone, but in particular towards women.
"There was a young lady with two small children waiting to be served at our stall, a guy had gone along the queue asking everyone for money.
"She opened her purse and he grabbed a £20 note and ran off. No-one pursued him.
“I called the police, but they didn’t come. The lady was quite shaken, so I sat her down and made her a hot drink.
"She made a phone call to a relative to come and get her."
Methadone handouts
Matthew thinks the problem has increased over the last five years and says there's now a limited police presence in the town since the Covid lockdown in 2020.
“We have the City Wardens who have no powers of arrest, all they can do if they see a crime is the same as us, which is call the police, who don’t respond," he said.
"Visible policing would make a tremendous difference.
“The other thing which is the main cause of anti-social behaviour is methadone, which is being dispensed by chemists in the core of the city.
"You have addicts hanging around waiting for their methadone and they are quite menacing.
You have addicts hanging around waiting for their methadone and they are quite menacing
Matthew Stevens
“It seems ridiculous to be dispensing methadone in the core shopping area because you’re encouraging drug addicts to come into the city centre."
He says an alleyway that runs from the car park to the city centre has become a no-go area for families.
"It’s where drug addicts hover," he explained. "It’s become a public latrine and women bringing their small children shopping don’t want to run the gauntlet of that alleyway.
“There is a thriving trade in illegal substances. The council had to take away the two telephone boxes because they became a business office for drug dealers so the council knows about the problems.
"I can’t understand why they won’t do something about it.
“We’re not dealing with drug-dealers in a sharp suit. It’s not a Pablo Escobar situation, it’s one drug addict selling to another drug addict so they can make a little bit more money to fuel their habit.
"They’re using, they’re selling and they’re using again.”
Brazen shoplifting
His wife Jane Stevens, also 57, works in the carvery every day, serving hot drinks and food.
She said: “I see drug taking, drug dealing and drunks daily, and some of them are genuinely homeless, but not all.
"I arrive at 8.45am every morning and they’re not here, they’ve got somewhere to stay. They appear around 10am and sit in the doorways and beg.
“The scariest part is people gathering to sell one another drugs.
"Many of these people are vulnerable and have mental health issues, and I’ve even taken them to the local offices which offer help, but many don’t have the confidence to go there themselves."
We’re not dealing with drug-dealers in a sharp suit. It’s not a Pablo Escobar situation, it’s one drug addict selling to another drug addict so they can make a little bit more money to fuel their habit
Matthew Stevens
Jane said lack of policing is leading to brazen criminality, adding: "It’s very rare we see police and street wardens don’t have the power to do anything.
“It doesn’t reassure the public as they know they can’t react to anything, so people from outside the city centre come into the city specifically to shoplift knowing they won’t get arrested.
“I’ve seen people coming out with armfuls of clothes, and I presume they then go and sell them for alcohol and drugs.
"There’s no security on the shops because of the cost and if anyone from the shop puts a hand on someone, they’ll be prosecuted.
“We really need police on our street.”
'Scared to go out after dark'
Sophie Tomlinson, 28, works in the city as a recruitment advisor one day a week.
She said: "I've seen people sleeping in doorways and drinking on the street in Westgate Street on my walk to work, and it's a real shame.
"The buildings and the history of the city are amazing but there's definitely a problem with anti-social behaviour.
"I wouldn't come into town at night time, only to the out-of-town cinema."
Fights and abuse in street
Around the corner on another street off The Cross, which forms the centre of the city, clockmaker Stephen Cliff, 66, runs Quayside Clocks on Southgate Street.
The street is the closest to Gloucester Quays, the former industrial site of Gloucester Docks, which was regenerated into a shopping and leisure attraction of outlet stores, cafes and restaurants in 2009.
Stephen said: “Homelessness and anti-social behaviour seem to go hand-in-hand. They congregate on a particular bench outside a convenience store and there’s a lot of street-drinking.
“There’s a lot of loud, aggressive banter which will sometimes result in an argument and leads to fisticuffs.
"A good number of times I’ve seen drunken unconscious people and I even phoned the police when one guy was getting physical with his girlfriend. The police came within a minute and took him away in a van.
“Gloucester is a historic centre and we have the Gloucester Quays which brings a lot of tourism.
"They think ‘let’s go and explore the city’, they come up the steps, cross the crossing and then see this and turn around and walk back.
“Obviously it affects business. Who wants to buy a nice antique clock when there’s a load of drunks sprawled outside the shop?
“I have liaised with the Community Police Officers, the police and City Safe.
"Gloucester has a lot going for it, but then you look at what else is happening on the streets and it makes you feel so depressed with the human race.”
Callum Deane, 29, is manager of The Vape Joint in Southgate Street, which specialises in CBD products. The shop is involved in trying to tackle the current situation and help homeless charities.
He said: “Gloucester has a lot of homeless people and in the summer, they hang around on the benches outside, but recently they’ve been moved on because of complaints of criminal damage, loud noise, substance abuse and alcoholism.
“I’ve worked here 11 years. They’re familiar faces and even customers – they might come in to buy a lighter."
Local charity Gloucester City Mission hands out hot drinks and biscuits to the homeless every morning and Callum's store helps.
“We hand out leaflets and bags for people to donate clothes," he told us.
"They receive any cash donations and take whatever warm coats or other clothes they need and we send the other clothes abroad.
“People have less money because of the cost of living but they're donating more clothes than ever before so our leaflet drops are obviously working. In turn we can give back to the community and help the homeless.”
A spokesperson for Gloucester City Council said: “We work in partnership with Gloucestershire Constabulary, Gloucester BID and City Safe to reduce the impact of anti-social behaviour in the city centre.
“This partnership includes the funding of City Protection Officers who are on the ground and can respond quickly to low level issues.
“More serious issues, or if someone is at risk of harm, are reported to the police and we would encourage the public to contact the police directly if they are concerned.”
A representative for Gloucestershire Police said: "Police work closely with partner agencies, including Gloucester City Council, Solace and homeless charities such as Streetlink and P3, to engage with vulnerable people and ensure they are provided with the help that they need.
"However, when necessary, they will take enforcement action, such as Criminal Behaviour Orders and ASB Injunctions.
"In summer officers from the Neighbourhood Policing Team took part in Operation Ebrius alongside City Protection Officers, Solace and the City Council.
"The operation, which aimed to tackle ASB and street drinking in the city centre, resulted in 1,302 offers of support and the seizure of 563 vessels of alcohol. Following this, the number of anti-social behaviour (ASB) incidents in the city centre reported to the police dropped.
"The Neighbourhood Policing Team is now looking to run a similar operation in December which will see an increase in patrols to tackle ASB.
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"We would ask that anybody who experiences anti-social behaviour reports it using the online form, so that we can take the appropriate action and direct people to the correct support .
"If there is a crime in progress at the time of calling, please ring 999."