IT IS apparent as you walk around town that there are more people sleeping rough.

According to the recent findings of an inquiry by MPs the number of rough sleepers in England rose by 30 per cent between 2014 and 2015 – and the government’s welfare reforms were blamed for driving this rise.

The news that 154 out of 286 hostel beds in Oxford are to close means that the problem will get worse.

The cause of the closure of the hostels is the central government funding cuts to local authorities, which means that they can no longer afford enough hostel places.

The Oxford Poverty Action Trust (OxPAT) was set up in the 1990s to provide a route for concerned people to make donations to help the homeless of Oxfordshire.

Some people are reluctant to donate directly to people begging on the street in case their donation gets spent on drink or drugs. By donating to OxPAT you ensure that all of your donation will go to help a homeless person in the most constructive way possible.

Concerned readers may visit our website at www.oxpat.org in order to find out what we do with the donations we receive, and to learn how to donate to us.

Jonathan Clark

Chair, OxPAT