When I first decided to move to Brighton a year ago to do a Master's Degree at the University of Sussex, people kept telling what a beautiful, vibrant and welcoming city it was. 

 

And they were right; what first impressed me about Brighton was how avant-garde it was, almost with 'a mind of its own', welcoming people from all backgrounds.

 

However what I instantly noticed was that there were homeless people sitting on the streets in almost every corner.

 

Coming from a country like Cyprus, with a population just under a million and being raised in a society where family and 'sticking together' is the most important thing, the concept of homelessness was somewhat alien to me.

 

However what came as a suprise was that although I kept seeing them everywhere, it seemed as if everybody else ignored their existence, and with more than 400 people on the streets, I found that puzzling, if not intriguing.

 

As if these people were part of an invisible community, I found it hard to understand how it can be so easy for someone to walk past another human being without so much as a glance. 

 

As a result, I decided to base my final year project on Brighton's homeless community, to try and find out not only how someone can come to this, but also what is being done to help them get back on their feet.

 

Speaking to numerous homeless people, local charities and churches, Sussex police as well as Brighton and Hove City Council, it became clear to me that a one's downfall is a result of an accumulation of blows to that person, whether they are financial, physical or psychological.

 

Working on this project was undoubtedly an eye-opening experience, and although challenging at times, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I learned a lot of things, including how easy it is to judge someone by his status, and how prejudiced people in Britain are when it comes to homeless people.

 

At the same time, I understood how hard it is for most of these people to be in the situation they are in, going hungry for days, sleeping rough for weeks and feeling invisible to everyone else.

 

The hardest part of this project was not spending an entire day as a homeless person, or speaking to people in that situation.

 

The hardest part for me was returning home to a warm bed, a warm meal, a roof over my head and the security of knowing what the next morning will bring, fully aware that the person who just hours ago willingly provided me with the information needed to write my articles, had none of those. 

 

As a result, I wanted not only to raise awareness about the disturbingly large homeless community in Brighton, but I also wanted to highlight who is doing what in this city, and provide the opportunity for support to those who were open to it.

 

From including a 'donate' button on stories that involved charities and organisations offering their services for free, to embedding Nick's CV on one of my articles, I wanted something good to come out of this project, believing that even if just one person's life changes because of this site, it would make a difference.

 

If you would like to know more about this project, contact me and I would be happy to respond.

 

 

Sandra Christofi