0:00:09 > 0:00:12People become homeless for numerous reasons,
0:00:12 > 0:00:17but when you find yourself sleeping on the streets it's extremely tough.
0:00:18 > 0:00:21When you're sleeping you can feel the cold coming up through
0:00:21 > 0:00:23the cardboard, getting into your bones,
0:00:23 > 0:00:28and you can't describe the feeling, but you just cannot get warm.
0:00:28 > 0:00:30I had about four coats on.
0:00:30 > 0:00:32I was known for wearing loads of coats, you know.
0:00:32 > 0:00:34It was cold, I hardly ever slept.
0:00:34 > 0:00:38I got, like, frostbite, actually, on my toes, you know, as well.
0:00:38 > 0:00:40There are tens of thousands of homeless people
0:00:40 > 0:00:46sleeping on our streets, in squats, hostels or on sofas every night.
0:00:46 > 0:00:51I think it's really shocking to see people sleeping rough in winter,
0:00:51 > 0:00:54and it makes me want to do something to help. And it'd be really great
0:00:54 > 0:00:58if you could take if you could take a few minutes to help as well.
0:00:58 > 0:00:59'Believe it or not,
0:00:59 > 0:01:04'the average age of death for a homeless person is just 47.'
0:01:04 > 0:01:07I have always been lucky to have a roof over my head,
0:01:07 > 0:01:11but I know that every year in Britain far too many people find
0:01:11 > 0:01:14themselves without a safe or secure place to call home.
0:01:17 > 0:01:21Tony Finney always found it easy to get work and somewhere to live.
0:01:22 > 0:01:26I had a good job, a nice flat. I socialised.
0:01:26 > 0:01:28It was really enjoyable.
0:01:28 > 0:01:32He worked in a hotel, but all that changed after the recession
0:01:32 > 0:01:35when the hotel started making cuts.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39Basically, lost my job, and within a month of that I'd lost my flat, too.
0:01:39 > 0:01:43I think you're probably one or two wage packets away from homelessness.
0:01:43 > 0:01:44I sofa surfed for a while,
0:01:44 > 0:01:48um, but people's goodwill only lasts for so long.
0:01:48 > 0:01:50I ended up sleeping under a bridge.
0:01:51 > 0:01:57I was traumatised to go from having everything to having nothing.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59A real shock to my system.
0:01:59 > 0:02:03He was alarmed by the tough reality of life on the streets.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06Sleeping out on the street was a real eye-opener.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08Um, I was quite frightened.
0:02:08 > 0:02:13Er, and not really knowing what to do,
0:02:13 > 0:02:17I wouldn't sleep in shop doorways because I didn't feel safe.
0:02:17 > 0:02:19I thought that someone could come along, maybe,
0:02:19 > 0:02:22kick me or spit at me, or hit me,
0:02:22 > 0:02:25urinate on me, I mean, who knows what could happen?
0:02:25 > 0:02:27Tony's search for safety took him
0:02:27 > 0:02:30further away from the secure life he once led.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33I actually went up to the forest where I got some cardboard,
0:02:33 > 0:02:37I had a sleeping bag, so I was sleeping, literally in the snow.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39I spent many, many nights shivering.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43Um, yeah, it was a real, a real tough time.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46It does go through your mind, "Do I really want to exist right now?"
0:02:48 > 0:02:51'Living on the streets for someone like Tony can be stressful
0:02:51 > 0:02:53'and dangerous.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56'When I was a psychiatric nurse I often met people whose mental
0:02:56 > 0:03:00'health had seriously deteriorated through homelessness.'
0:03:01 > 0:03:03That's why I support Crisis,
0:03:03 > 0:03:08who offer immediate help to people separated from home and family.
0:03:11 > 0:03:15For people with nowhere to stay, or no-one to turn to at Christmas,
0:03:15 > 0:03:18Crisis is a charity that will open its doors,
0:03:18 > 0:03:23welcoming more than 4,000 people at centres across the UK,
0:03:23 > 0:03:27giving them a chance to leave homelessness behind for good.
0:03:27 > 0:03:32Crisis coordinates the operation from a warehouse in South London.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34'Tony had been homeless for six months
0:03:34 > 0:03:37'when he was referred to Crisis at Christmas.'
0:03:37 > 0:03:39How was it when you first arrived?
0:03:39 > 0:03:43It was amazing to actually come through the doors of Crisis
0:03:43 > 0:03:46to be greeted by a warm smile, friendly person,
0:03:46 > 0:03:49it was just really, really lovely and comforting, to be honest,
0:03:49 > 0:03:52and to know that I was going to be somewhere for a whole week.
0:03:52 > 0:03:57Guests will enjoy warmth, hot meals, beds, new clothes,
0:03:57 > 0:04:01access to doctors, and many other services.
0:04:01 > 0:04:04Getting my hair cut was an amazing feeling, it just totally
0:04:04 > 0:04:08transformed me from actually being out on the streets to coming in,
0:04:08 > 0:04:09and it was just really warm for me
0:04:09 > 0:04:12to actually have a haircut and feel human again.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16Crisis, at the time, was really important to me
0:04:16 > 0:04:18because it helped me move forward in my life.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21It gave me new confidence and within a week of actually being
0:04:21 > 0:04:24at Crisis I'd actually got my own place,
0:04:24 > 0:04:26so it was really transformative.
0:04:26 > 0:04:28How's your life now?
0:04:28 > 0:04:31My life now is, I'm certainly in a far better place, I'm not...
0:04:31 > 0:04:34everything hasn't happened that I'd like to,
0:04:34 > 0:04:36but I'm slowly moving forward.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39I've volunteered for the last couple of years for Crisis,
0:04:39 > 0:04:42and I've also got a part-time job driving.
0:04:42 > 0:04:46'Crisis has really helped Tony get his life back on track.'
0:04:48 > 0:04:51It may seem particularly harsh being homeless at Christmas,
0:04:51 > 0:04:55but homelessness is a year round emergency.
0:04:55 > 0:04:59Crisis is busy for the entire year helping people
0:04:59 > 0:05:02out of homelessness all over the country.
0:05:05 > 0:05:09One person that was in need of help was Ellie Wright.
0:05:10 > 0:05:13She found herself homeless trying to escape domestic violence.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19I felt really, yeah, lonely on the streets, to be honest.
0:05:19 > 0:05:21It's just like, it was horrible, you know.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25Even if I was with people I felt alone, you know.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29It was just the fear, you know, but the drink kept me company.
0:05:29 > 0:05:32That was, like, my only friend, I felt.
0:05:32 > 0:05:34Which was... obviously, it wasn't.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37It was a big part of my life that was disastrous.
0:05:37 > 0:05:43Ellie became completely dependent on alcohol and the damage was immediate.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46I lost, like, basically, 3st in about, I don't know,
0:05:46 > 0:05:47just over a month to be honest.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51It just dropped off because I didn't eat. You know... with being cold.
0:05:51 > 0:05:53It was horrible.
0:05:53 > 0:05:56Ellie was on and off the streets for three years.
0:05:56 > 0:06:00During that time she had to hunt for any opportunity to find safety
0:06:00 > 0:06:01or warmth.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04Ah, yeah. This is the one.
0:06:04 > 0:06:05Yeah, this one.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08This is one of the bunkers I used to stay in, you know.
0:06:08 > 0:06:11There's a door on it now, and it looks totally different.
0:06:11 > 0:06:14It used to be really horrible with the weather, it was freezing.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17I had like a duvet somebody had given me, from one of the
0:06:17 > 0:06:21local people, it was just, like, but it was never warm enough.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23I was always freezing, you know.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25It was just, you know, it was just...
0:06:25 > 0:06:27a vile, horrible, horrible life.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32I got to the stage where I would be thinking,
0:06:32 > 0:06:36where I couldn't stand being the way it was.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40I just thought, ah, if I went to sleep, I didn't want to wake up.
0:06:40 > 0:06:42You know, it just got that bad I just thought,
0:06:42 > 0:06:43is this all my life is?
0:06:43 > 0:06:45It's just not good.
0:06:45 > 0:06:49Things came to a head and Ellie was admitted to a psychiatric unit.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54It was when she left hospital that Ellie heard about the Crisis
0:06:54 > 0:06:55centre in Merseyside,
0:06:55 > 0:07:00one of the charity's year-round services across the country.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03When I first came to Crisis I did feel like there was a weight
0:07:03 > 0:07:04lifted, you know.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07There's people who genuinely want to help, you know,
0:07:07 > 0:07:09and see me succeed.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12She enrolled on courses that the charity offered to build
0:07:12 > 0:07:17confidence, deal with anxiety and help employment prospects.
0:07:17 > 0:07:21I've enjoyed the courses with crisis, especially the art
0:07:21 > 0:07:25and maths because they've given me a purpose, you know, with the courses.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27You know, I just like building up my skills.
0:07:28 > 0:07:32Crisis has turned Ellie's life around.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35I do feel like crisis have actually, you know,
0:07:35 > 0:07:37built up my life again, basically,
0:07:37 > 0:07:39cos it was so broken.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42If I hadn't found out about Crisis,
0:07:42 > 0:07:44I really don't know where I'd be, to be honest.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46As I say, I'd probably be dead.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51'This year, Crisis has helped thousands of people
0:07:51 > 0:07:54'get their lives back on track through its housing,
0:07:54 > 0:07:58'education, employment and health services.'
0:07:58 > 0:08:02Now Crisis would like your help to support thousands more who
0:08:02 > 0:08:06sleep on the streets every night of the year.
0:08:06 > 0:08:10Not just emergency help at Christmas, all the year round.
0:08:10 > 0:08:12Please donate what you can.
0:08:12 > 0:08:14To donate, please go to the website
0:08:14 > 0:08:17bbc.co.uk/lifeline.
0:08:17 > 0:08:18To give by phone
0:08:18 > 0:08:22call 0800 011 011.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25Calls are free from mobiles and landlines.
0:08:25 > 0:08:29You can also donate £10 by texting GIVE to 70121.
0:08:29 > 0:08:32Texts cost £10 plus your standard network message charge,
0:08:32 > 0:08:34and the whole £10 goes to Crisis.
0:08:34 > 0:08:39Full terms and conditions can be found at bbc.co.uk/lifeline.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41If you'd like to post a donation,
0:08:41 > 0:08:43please make your cheque payable to Crisis,
0:08:43 > 0:08:45and send it to Freepost, BBC Lifeline Appeal,
0:08:45 > 0:08:48writing Crisis on the back of the envelope.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51And if you want the charity to claim Gift Aid on your donation
0:08:51 > 0:08:53please include an e-mail or postal address
0:08:53 > 0:08:56so that they can send you a Gift Aid form.
0:08:56 > 0:08:57Thank you.