An anonymous man has been living on the streets of Merseyside for the past seven days in a bid to uncover the grim reality of life for the region's rough sleepers.
The man has set up a Twitter account where he has been documenting his time on the streets as he attempts to raise the many issues those battling homelessness are facing.
The anonymous man, who says he was living on the streets himself in the 1980s, has been on the streets of Wirral for the past seven days and has tweeted about his interactions with the public and homeless services.
Explaining his plan via a fundraiser for homeless charities, the man said: "I have worked in homelessness for a lot of years and come across the same stories about how people are treated, how they are looked down upon and the lack of real time help.
"I have also had people telling me that it is safer on the streets and that they are scared when they are in night shelters or hostels.
"I am going to be spending seven nights on the streets - I will not have any money on me unless it is given to me and will not use emergency accommodation as I will be taking up a place that could be used by somebody else.
"I will however feed myself and take part in begging if that is what I have to do."
He added: "I have decided to do this at this time of year as it will provide me more information on how services are working together,how much help there is available and what hoops if any there are to jump through to get the help."
Tweeting about one of his first experiences on the street, earlier in the week, the anonymous man said: "I have had a young lad share his lunch with me, lovely lad with no addiction.
"It makes me wonder why he hasn't already got his own accommodation, he has shown me around and been very polite, respectful - will find out more about him this week and help if I can."
Tweeting about homeless services on another occasion, he said: "Not stopped raining for hours now.
"Very disappointed that I've seen no outreach out trying to get people indoors.
"Anyway I'm keeping out of the rain the best I can, sadly if it wasn't for the young man earlier I'd be totally lost and have no idea of location of services .. still looking for my seven day home but nowhere seems quiet enough but visible at the same time."
Unsurprisingly, there have been difficult moments for the anonymous man during his time on the streets.
At one point he tweeted: "Had to move on earlier, no idea what went on but loads of shouting and banging, two cars sped off then a few minutes later police arrived.
On another day he added: "I had a terrible sleep last night,I'm absolutely knackered it was noisy, cold... now imagine after 10 days how you would feel. Desperate, alone, physically and mentally exhausted.
"I think turning to something to help you sleep would be an option, alcohol, drugs etc would be a lot easier to do, it's okay for me I know I can go home at anytime, sadly the guys on the streets are trapped in this circle."
He also spoke of the serious effect living alone on the streets can have on someone's mental health, explaining: "Been quiet today and too cold.
"I'm hating my own company and the endless miles of pavement. Easy to see how toxic friendships are formed on the streets .. we need social engagement but sadly none here."
He added: "Honestly feel absolutely depressed I'm not sure if it's the constant cold and rain or the lack of interaction with people.
"Ive always been a bit of a loner anyway but this is exacerbated by the tiredness, broken sleep and cold."
If you would like to follow the journey of the anonymous man, you can do so on twitter @anonymous31873, you can add to his charity fund here.
The ECHO is hoping to catch up with the campaigner after his time on the streets and speak to him about what he found out.
