Fake homeless beggar claims he can make £60 an hour in central London

Rebecca Speare-Cole21 March 2019

A fake homeless beggar said he can earn up to £60 an hour in one central London spot.

For a new three-part Channel 4 series, ex-soldier Ed Stafford spent 60 winter nights and days on the streets with no money, food or shelter to study Britain's growing homeless crisis first-hand.

Mr Stafford, for the second episode, travelled to London where thousands of people are sleeping on the streets every night.

The number of rough-sleepers has rapidly increased over the past few years, but this has led to some taking advantage of the situation and posing as homeless beggars.

A man named Neil who says he can earn £30 every half hour begging in the West End despite not being homeless

One man named Neil, who is not homeless, tells Mr Stafford that he can earn £30 in half an hour posing as a beggar near the West End in central London.

He said: "The spot I share, I share it with someone who is actually homeless, because I'm not. No I have got a two bedroom house.

"It's amazing what people will give you if they think that you are homeless," he said.

"I do feel a bit of a c*** not being homeless. But I ain't got no money, I've got a drug habit and I've got to feed it somehow."

In some circumstances, Mr Stafford learned how some beggars use tactics to make extraordinary sums of money, often more than the average wage.

A rough-sleeper named Darren who said he once received £600 in one day
Channel 4

A rough-sleeper named Darren told Mr Stafford to remove pound coins from his cup because people "will nick the rest," but also advised him to focus on keeping his feet warm.

Darren explained people praying can yield results, saying: "It's about painting a picture isn't it?"

"In my eyes the biggest donators are the people who have just been to the pub.

"They just give you money, silly money as well. The most I have had off one person is £600."

Another man named Terry, who Mr Stafford met on the Strand said he can earn around £200-£300 a day.

Terry said: "It's mostly from the tourists."

"The people of London overall are great. But a lot of people now, they've the tendency to overfeed you - give you more food than they would money."

Part two of '60 Days on the Streets', which explores homelessness across Manchester, London and Glasgow, airs on Thursday at 9pm on Channel 4.

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