'We’re just a statistic to the Government, I suppose': The homeless people being evicted from an unused, derelict London building

'That cold snap was absolutely awful. Even in a sleeping bag, you just can’t keep warm'

Standing on the third floor of a derelict office block in London, Reggie, a weathered man in his fifties, tells The Independent: "I’d have starved if it weren’t for this place. That’s the reality of it.”

Within two weeks the building was transformed into a vibrant homeless shelter to more than 150 people. Sleeping bags and blankets line the ground, and a buzz of chatter and gentle snoring fills the air.

Before the space opened up to the homeless, the bricklayer had been enduring the freezing temperatures out on the streets, an ordeal he described as “horrific”.

But after his landlord had decided not to renew the lease on the flat he rented with his partner, they were left with no choice.

“We were sleeping in doorways and riding the night buses to try keep warm. It’s not nice watching your girlfriend freeze,” said Reggie. “That cold snap was absolutely awful. Even in a sleeping bag, you just can’t keep warm. I’m used to working out in the open as well, but it was brass monkey weather."

If it weren't for the shelter, dubbed the Sofia Solidarity Centre by the volunteers who set it up, the consequences could have been deadly, he added. "I imagine one of us would’ve ended up in hospital,” he says, later adding that he would have probably "starved".

After his arrival at the centre, Reggie has begun to turn his life around. He has managed to collect a small amount of money from donations to buy the tools that will allow him to start working again. He has formed a new network of friends which provides support and comfort.

But all this is to come to an end earlier this week, after a court backed an eviction order and said the property must be emptied after its owner launched legal action.

The decision means Reggie, who had been hoping to remain in the shelter while he carried out a week in hand, and scores of other vulnerable people using the centre, could be doomed back to the streets at any moment. With the weather set to worsen in the coming days, many fear this could be potentially fatal.

“The reality is, someone could die because of it in this cold snap. Someone’s going to lose a son a brother or a sister," said Reggie. "But we’re just a statistic to the Government I suppose. It’s one less they’ve got to worry about."

Despite the court verdict, the shelter remains a positive space. It is unkempt yet charming. A comradery has built up among the selfless volunteers and the homeless men and women. Food is prepared in a makeshift kitchen area and a small “free shop” area is filled with clothes, shoes and toiletries donated by members of the public.

But amid the cosy atmosphere looms the knowledge that it won’t last for much longer.

Jon Glackin, founder of Streets Kitchen, the grassroots group which opened the shelter, told The Independent it was helping to “keep people alive”. The court order was potentially a life and death situation for many, he said.

“People have been dying on the streets. We took this building to keep people alive,” he said, during a rare moment when he isn’t pre-occupied with speaking with and offering support to homeless people in the shelter.

“We’ve had paramedics down. People have been referred people for hospital, treatable conditions that people were able to help with. We’ve had homeless outreach down here. It’s a place to share information and try save people’s lives.

“But the court has ruled that this empty building is better left empty, that peoples’ lives aren’t that important. We’ve got Sadiq Khan saying they’re helping us, but they’ve done nothing."

It comes after a homeless man died in his tent near a church amid freezing temperatures, weeks after being discharged from hospital with pneumonia. Another man recently died just yards from Parliament.

Mr Glackin explained that the group is now calling on the public to donate emergency sleeping bags. It's "the best we can do", he said, quickly adding that it is not good enough.

"There are lots of people around here. We’ve proven we can do this, and we never ask for any money," he said.

“This has become a home for people, everyone knows about this place now. It’s open 24 hours a day. There’s always a cup of tea, there’s always someone to talk to. It’s been beautiful. And that’s all going to go now. These people are going to be kicked out on the streets.

“We would not have to do this if the system worked. The system is broken, it’s designed to fail.”

You can donate to the Sofia Solidarity Centre Sleeping Bag Fund via PayPal by emailing sofiasolidaritycentrelondon@gmail.com.