'We're working together to tackle homelessness in Brighton'

However, your comment that, in the past, "homeless people with no local link have not been given more than a train ticket back to where they were from" is not correct. Local charities in Brighton and Hove have always taken care to ensure that when relocating people away from the city they have somewhere to stay.

There are two important issues arising from your story. Firstly, a positive result for Mr Agnew was possible because of the co-ordinated work of three charities, not just one.

The outreach project provided by the charity Change Grow Live (CGL) links people who are rough sleeping into support services such as First Base Day Centre run by BHT Sussex where people can get a hot drink, food, showers, clean and dry clothes, and support to help them to move off the street.

Several services, including CGL, BHT Sussex and St Mungo's, help people with no local connection to find accommodation elsewhere.

The second important issue is to make sure that homeless people are discouraged from coming to Brighton and Hove because they are unlikely to achieve their aspirations here.

Services are operating at capacity. The cost of renting accommodation is often beyond the reach of those without employment. If someone is homeless or in crisis, coming to Brighton and Hove will often make matters worse for them.

The local connection policy, my call not to give money to people who are begging, and relocating people away from the city, have been controversial in the past, but increasingly they are recognised as playing a part in trying to tackle homelessness in Brighton and Hove.

Here is Brighton homelessness charities work well together, working to our individual strengths and making a real difference to the lives of people who find themselves homeless.

Andy Winter

Chief executive

BHT Sussex