SOME rough sleepers in Worcester have pitched tents down the River Severn in Diglis.

Three tents have been spotted around The Severn Way walk, two by Diglis Bridge and another on the St John's side of the river near Chapter Meadows. 

City Councillor Jabba Riaz said the council knows about the tents and officers have been sent out to them, but no one was present.

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It is believed the council does know who the individuals are and is engaging and supporting them to help identify move-on options. 

Cllr Riaz added: "We are a kind and compassionate city that looks after our most vulnerable.

"We have a great reputation nationally in terms of providing an excellent service to our rough sleepers.

"We are aware of tents on the St John's side.

"We weren’t, however, aware of the other site but have arranged for outreach to go out.

"The city council do a lot around rough sleeping and have a strong partnership in place.

"Our primary concern is that of the health and wellbeing of our rough sleepers and encourage the public to report via Street link which we get alerted to in order for us to respond."

He added that, according to last year's official count, the number of rough sleepers had gone from 21 in 2022 to 20.

"But nationally, numbers increased by 20%," he said.

"Numbers can fluctuate daily, but we have a strong and robust partnership approach in the city."

More than 2,000 people experiencing homelessness in Worcester approached the council asking for help in the past 12 months.

The total number of approaches for assistance (2,151) was 149 more than the year before, but led to Worcester City Council receiving 746 homeless applications - 68 fewer than in 2022/23.

A Worcester City Council spokesperson said: “The City Council and its partners will support and engage with any rough sleepers in this city area.

“Anyone who spots someone sleeping in Worcester can help by reporting their location on the Street Link website.

"A support officer will then go out to visit them and provide assistance.”

Worcester City Council also has an Ending Rough Sleeping Plan, which focuses on a ‘Target Priority Group’ of 23 rough sleepers and sees housing officers having regular meetings with other service providers.