Michael, aged 34, has been sleeping rough ‘off and on’ for nine years. He started smoking cannabis and binge drinking when he was 14 and has been injecting heroin since he was 21. He begs on a daily basis to fund his habit.
Michael has only recently moved to this city/town/area from another part of Scotland. His health is poor: he suffers from Hepatitis C and has bad abscesses on his legs resulting from intravenous needle use. Michael was a serial school truant, has no qualifications and has never had paid employment. Some of the workers he has been in contact with suspect he may have mild learning disabilities but there’s been no formal assessment.
