#NoMoreHomelessDeaths

Ongoing fund to raise money to buy sleeping bags and items such as toiletries, high energy foods and drinks to hand out survival kits containing these items to the homeless sleeping on our streets up and down the United Kingdom.

Why we are doing this: ⬇⬇

My brother Matthew was found dead on Tuesday March 21st 2017, he was sleeping rough as Glasgow was hit with blizzard conditions.

Matthew had struggled with alcohol addiction and mental health issues, which led to him spending long periods sleeping rough on the streets of Glasgow unbeknown to his family  in Aberdeen.

My brother Matthew had recently been making an effort to get his life back on the straight and narrow. He stayed in regular contact with my parents and gave them regular updates on his attendances at vigils for the homeless and his progress with mental health and alcohol addiction programmes to make a go of things in his birth city of Glasgow.

He was a Celtic fanatic and loved to attend the games as a child with eldest brother William.

Matthew was a vocal advocate of homeless people's rights and often attended vigils and protests to support and raise awareness of their plight. But with my parents based in Aberdeen and me in Manchester, our family were largely unaware of how desperate his situation had become. I know my brother was a vulnerable young man with a decade-long fight with alcohol and mental health problems but we just feel that he should have been a priority in the eyes of the council.

Matthew attended vigils previously and did support the rights of the homeless. We just didn't realise he had been failed this way himself.

I believe we need to protect our homeless people, especially those much more vulnerable with mental health conditions. There should be shelter for all homeless at night-time.

There's no excuse for allowing people to sleep rough in a 'civilised' society that is known for sub-zero temperatures. There's no area more obvious to spot a homeless person than in one of Glasgow's busiest shopping streets. It's just a tragedy that one has died there in the cold of night. My brother was left to die there!

I wouldn't wish this on anyone!!

Homeless charities have been campaigning for the city council to open up empty buildings to offer rough sleepers protection from the elements.

John Glackin, from the charity Streets Kitchen, said: "There are too many needless deaths on our streets. We need to open up all available empty buildings immediately so as to simply ensure that no more people die before their time and get a chance at life without the hardships of surviving on our freezing cold streets."

My brother Matthew was popular among friends who knew him for a mischievous sense of humour, his love of football and devotion to his children, nephews and nieces. He was described as a 'lovable rogue' by friends who knew he had a good heart. He deserved the chance of rehabilitation just as much as everyone else.

Matthew was laid to rest on April 5th 2017. He received a dignified send off thanks to the generosity of those who donated to this fund.

But our fight for the uk's homeless and vulnerable has just begun....

Please donate what you can. Pence or pounds... clothes or food.

Please share and spread the word - our government must TAKE ACTION!

#JusticeForMatty #Justiceforthehomeless

Regular updates on our Facebook page 'Justice for Matthew and the Homeless' will be posted to ensure you can keep up to date with our fight against the lack of care our government gives in relation to those being forced to sleep rough.