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Begging, street drinking and rough sleeping

We are committed to helping people with begging, street drinking and rough sleeping issues by providing the right support they need. We do this by working in partnership with local support agencies and the police.

Like many other cities, Leicester has issues with:

  • Beggars approaching members of the public asking for money, in both a passive and aggressive manner.
  • People drinking or taking drugs on the streets and being anti-social and
  • Those rough sleeping, as such, these issues remain a concern for those who live, work and visit our city centre.

What do we do?

  • Multi-Agency Outreach: speaking to people on the street to understand how and why they are begging, for example and explain what support is available and offering direct support on the street to those that find it difficult to engage with services.
  • Specialist services: offering a range of support with health, mental health, drug and alcohol treatment and more.
  • Drop in facilities, hostels and floating support services: to help people to find accommodation or maintain.

Street Drinking Order

Leicester City Council and partners have implemented a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) to deal with street drinking issues. Police Officers are authorised to enforce the PSPO with the power to request people to stop drinking alcohol in a public place if engaged in anti-social behaviour and ask them to surrender the alcohol. For details see the full order at the bottom of this page.