Glasgow City Mission homeless shelter staff save four lives in under two months

Staff at a homeless shelter in Glasgow have saved the lives of four people in under two months.

Glasgow City Mission said three people had been saved through the use of naloxone and another with CPR at their Overnight Welcome Centre (OWC).

The centre has supported nearly 500 people since opening 50 days ago – more than double the number from the same time last year.

Based in Glasgow city centre, the OWC offers emergency beds for those at risk of rough sleeping and is open from December 1 to March 31.

The charity said it has witnessed a sharp increase in the number of people presenting in need of accommodation this year, which they say “reflects an increased level of poverty brought on by the cost of living crisis, a broken asylum system and the housing emergency”.

Among those to have used the shelter since it opened for the year include 379 people eligible for accommodation, 53 people who had no recourse to public funds, 35 people who already had accommodation elsewhere and 20 people from England and Wales.

The majority of those seeking help from the charity were men (86.8%) while 13.4% were women.

A spokesperson explained: “This year’s Overnight Welcome Centre has been incredibly busy.

“This week with the drop in temperatures, we put on extra shifts to keep our guests safe and warm in freezing temperatures until our daytime services started.

“Tonight is our 50th night and already we have supported 491 individual guests saving four lives, three using naloxone to reverse an overdose by blocking the effects of opioids, and one with CPR.

“The number of guests is more than double the number at the same time last year and reflects an increased level of poverty brought on by the cost of living crisis, a broken asylum system and the housing emergency declared in Glasgow.”