• Privacy policy
  • T&C’s
  • About Us
    • FAQ
    • Meet the Team
  • Contact us
TLE ONLINE SHOP!
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Opinion
  • Elevenses
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
  • Food
    • All Food
    • Recipes
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
  • JOBS
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
SUPPORT THE LONDON ECONOMIC
NEWSLETTER
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Opinion
  • Elevenses
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
  • Food
    • All Food
    • Recipes
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
  • JOBS
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
No Result
View All Result
Home News Environment

Tanning salon uses sprinklers to deter rough sleepers

A tanning salon has sparked outrage after it installed anti-homeless SPRINKLERS to stop rough sleeping outside its shop. The automatic system comes on in the evening and drips water from the roof making the area unusable for rough sleepers until it shuts off in the morning. Any homeless person who decided to sleep outside the […]

Joe Mellor by Joe Mellor
2018-01-31 11:34
in Environment, News
FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmailWhatsapp

A tanning salon has sparked outrage after it installed anti-homeless SPRINKLERS to stop rough sleeping outside its shop.

The automatic system comes on in the evening and drips water from the roof making the area unusable for rough sleepers until it shuts off in the morning.

Any homeless person who decided to sleep outside the Consul tanning salon on the Horsefair in Bristol would wake up to find themselves soaking wet.

Owners say the sprinklers were the least aggressive way to deter homeless people.

But as temperatures plummet, the move has sparked anger from rough sleepers and people working with them in the city centre.

A general view of Consul oin Bristol, where they have installed sprinklers in the roof to deter homeless people.

One man, Dexter, has been sleeping rough on and off for four years, said he knew of the sprinklers.

He said: “It’s a bit out of order to do that. What purpose does it serve? Most people aren’t nasty people – they don’t deserve to be punished for being homeless.

RelatedPosts

Raab rejects bid to include right to abortion in Bill of Rights as Creasy slams move

Steve Bray: Stop Brexit Man vows to protest ‘twice as loud’ after police seize amplifiers

Corbyn’s message to Royal Mail as workers balloted on summer strike action

Watch: Liz Truss skewered over questions on government links to ‘authoritarian’ Saudi Arabia

“What we need is safe places to sleep. I slept here on the pavement last night, that wasn’t safe.

“Fair play if some people are making a mess, – but that’s what it feels like: its punishing people for being homeless.”

Salon bosses said the sprinklers were installed at the store in response to growing numbers of homeless people using the area overnight.

Dexter who has been sleeping rough on and off for four years, he said he knew of the sprinklers: “It’s a bit out of order to do that.

Jesper Primdhal, the salon’s director said: “Obviously homelessness is on the rise in the city centre.

“Eighteen months ago we had just one or two people sleeping there – we had an understanding with them that when we turned up for work at 7am they would move on – it worked fine they packed up with no problem.

“That went on for a year but six months ago we started getting a group of five, six, seven people sleeping there.”

Water drips out of the nozzles in the ceiling all night, making it unusable for rough sleepers.

Jesper said the group left vomit outside the shop as well as needles and bottles. He said some of the group were abusive to his staff, who are mostly young women.

“We called the police four or five times,” he said. ”’It was too much. In the end we thought what is the least aggressive deterrent?

”The simplest solution was to make it rain in that area, just enough to stop people sleeping there.

“In the end we are responsible for our staff, some of whom are leaving work at 10.30pm, so we talked to everyone and the decision was made.”

The sprinklers are doing a good job of stopping homeless people from sleeping near the salon, but Jesper admitted it was just part of a much wider problem in Bristol.

He said: “We can see it in the streets – it’s a serious problem but it’s really the council’s job to find a permanent solution, this isn’t a solution.

”Moving them around isn’t a solution.”

While Jesper says he was acting in the best interests of his staff, the sprinklers have caused anger among those working to make life more bearable for homeless people.

Closeup of sprinklers in the roof outside Consul tanning shop in Bristol where they have installed sprinklers in the roof to deter homeless people.

A lady called Julie and her group of volunteers hand out coffee, shower gel, socks and other essentials to rough sleepers there.

She said: “I’m appalled at the way certain business owners are treating the homeless.

“We need to be looking after the rough sleepers in the town. I keep hearing stories from the rough sleepers about how they’re being treated and how they’re being pushed out of the city.

“Really all we’re doing is pushing them out, making them someone else’s problem.

”Let’s look after them, do something to help – not put sprinklers on them, not take away their cardboard remove their belongings.”

David Withers said he saw the sprinkler system on his way to work – he said such deterrents “weaponised public spaces” against those at the bottom of society.

A general view spikes on the wall outside Consul in Bristol, where they have installed sprinklers in the roof to deter homeless people.

He said: “Obviously I’m well aware of the fact that problems like addiction and antisocial behaviour can come along with homelessness and can sympathise with business owners but this seems like a very cold and uncaring measure.

“If one was unaware of the presence of the system they could well be soaked during the night which could well be a death sentence at this time of the year.”

 

https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/news/19-shocking-facts-homelessness-epidemic-uk/09/11/

 

https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/news/homeless-man-snubbed-starbucks-says-hes-overwhelmed-girls-kindness/18/01/

Since you are here

Since you are here, we wanted to ask for your help.

Journalism in Britain is under threat. The government is becoming increasingly authoritarian and our media is run by a handful of billionaires, most of whom reside overseas and all of them have strong political allegiances and financial motivations.

Our mission is to hold the powerful to account. It is vital that free media is allowed to exist to expose hypocrisy, corruption, wrongdoing and abuse of power. But we can't do it without you.

If you can afford to contribute a small donation to the site it will help us to continue our work in the best interests of the public. We only ask you to donate what you can afford, with an option to cancel your subscription at any point.

To donate or subscribe to The London Economic, click here.

The TLE shop is also now open, with all profits going to supporting our work.

The shop can be found here.

You can also SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER .

Subscribe to our Newsletter

View our  Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions

Trending on TLE

  • All
  • trending
Abdollah

‘Rescue us’: Afghan teacher begs UK to help him escape Taliban

CHOMSKY: “If Corbyn had been elected, Britain would be pursuing a much more sane course”

What If We Got Rid Of Prisons?

More from TLE

PM says if deal fails, ‘we may never leave’ EU

‘Catalogue of serious errors’ – BBC fined for contempt after broadcasting footage of court hearing

Horse already bolted? Royal family to consider appointing diversity chief

Reminder of the 34 Labour MPs who defied Keir Starmer to vote against the SpyCops Bill

‘On the verge of collapse’ as outsourced tracing fails to contact almost 250,000 people

Are Banks About to Operate Completely Online?

Vodafone – Britain’s worst mobile phone operator for customer service

Lurching leftwards? Andrew Neil to host new political show on Channel 4

Jacob Rees-Mogg defends fans booing England players for taking the knee

‘Masks are the new Brexit’: Divide as Johnson plans to scrap restrictions

JOBS

FIND MORE JOBS

About Us

TheLondonEconomic.com – Open, accessible and accountable news, sport, culture and lifestyle.

Read more

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.




No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Food
  • Travel
  • JOBS
  • More…
    • Elevenses
    • Opinion
    • Property
    • Tech & Auto
  • About Us
    • Meet the Team
    • Privacy policy
  • Contact us

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.