Multi-storey shanty town: Homeless migrants and drug addicts have turned a £4 pounds an hour town centre carpark into a no-go area

Shoppers are being forced to share a busy council-run car park in a prosperous south-eastern town with a group of homeless migrants and drug addicts sleeping in tents. At least a dozen men have set up makeshift homes among the concrete pillars of Reading's Civic B Car Park, where the rate for an hour recently shot up from £2.10 to £4.30. The dilapidated brutalist building – which sits directly under the Berkshire town's magistrates' court – is used by barristers and hundreds of shoppers each day.

But when the Daily Mail visited the site, men were seen injecting heroin in dark corners and clothing was strewn across the floor. Our footage shows the grim conditions for inhabitants over two floors, with tents, blankets and belongings piled up on the urine-soaked floor. The men are largely confined to the first floor, which shoppers must walk past using steps – but also sleep by cars on the ground level. Some of the disturbing images show waste and discarded underwear on the ground just a few feet from shoppers’ cars.

On the day Prime Minister Andy Burnham vowed to 'fix rough sleeping', the Daily Mail visited the building and spoke with its inhabitants. At least a dozen men have set up makeshift homes among the concrete pillars of Reading's Civic B Car Park The dilapidated brutalist building - which sits directly under the Berkshire town's magistrates' court - is used by barristers and hundreds of shoppers each day Richard Okine, 33, from Ghana, has lived in the car park since 2023 after losing his life savings One of the block's residents, Richard Okine, 33, has lived there for almost three years after losing his life savings in a romance scam.

The father, who came to the UK from Ghana by plane six years ago, says it is too risky to sleep inside a tent due to a recent stabbing. He said: ‘Living here is very tough. One of the biggest problems I’ve faced is having the blankets we sleep on taken away. ‘I don’t use a tent. I just sleep with a blanket because I don’t feel safe inside a tent. Someone could come inside and do anything to you, and nobody outside would know what was happening. ‘There have been a few violent incidents here.

A lot of people smoke heroin and crack cocaine, and sometimes they get into arguments and fights. 'There was an incident a few months ago when someone cut another person’s ear. It was almost cut off.' Richard says he was allowed to stay in the UK on a family visa and previously worked in Sainsbury's and a cash-in-hand job as a cleaner. He admits he is addicted to heroin and that sometimes the only way for people in his situation to make money is to consider shoplifting. ‘I’m originally from Ghana, and I’ve lived in the UK for almost six years.

I came here legally on a family visa because my father brought me over,' he said. ‘I’m legally allowed to stay here, but my problem is that I’ve got pre-settled status. As I understand it, I need indefinite status before I’m eligible for housing or public funds. So I’m stuck in between. Discarded cigarette butts and clothes lie on the busy council-run car park where homeless men have set up camp The men's tents are largely confined to the first floor, which shoppers must walk past using steps When the Daily Mail visited the site, men were seen injecting heroin in dark corners and clothing was strewn across the floor ‘I can work, and I’ve worked before.

I’ve done cleaning jobs and worked at Sainsbury’s in Newbury. ‘But when you’re homeless, you’re dirty. Sometimes you can’t even take a shower. I haven’t had a shower for about eight months. I’m telling you the truth. ‘There are places where you can go to wash, but some of the people there are very aggressive, and you can end up getting into a fight. I decided not to go because it’s too risky.' Richard met a woman on Facebook from his home country and began sending her the money he earned while working here.

He said: 'She was from Ghana, and I fell in love with her. I thought we would get married. ‘I sent her money, rented and furnished a home for her, and paid for her education to become a nurse. 'But when I visited Ghana, I discovered another man had been staying at the house while I was away. The children told me he would arrive late at night and leave early in the morning. ‘I felt like I had been used. When I found out, it completely broke me.

I couldn’t work or do anything. That’s how I became homeless, and it still hurts me. ‘After the relationship, I started taking drugs. I began with weed, then moved on to crack and heroin. Now I’m an addict, although I’m on medication. ‘Sometimes I feel fed up with life, but I can still work.’ He went on: ‘I think the Government could do much more to help people in this situation. There should be some kind of support, or jobs that people can simply walk into and start working, even if they’re struggling with addiction. ’If the Government created jobs where people could turn up, do something useful for the country and get paid, regardless of whether they were addicts, I think it would make a real difference. 'So many people are stuck in situations like mine, and they need a way out.’

Another resident, James Johnson, 41, said: 'I was living in west London but I ended up getting into trouble and moved out here. 'It's horrible but what can you do. We've got a system set up here and it's easy to find what you want, drugs and whatever.' The former retail worker added: 'I'm happy to move if there's a better place to go, but where exactly? 'We are given a few weeks shelter around Christmas, but it's gonna be f***ing cold before then, let me tell you.'

Reading Borough Council has left a series of posters around the site stating it is 'not suitable' to live there. But it has not stopped a growing number of men from using the space as a home. Motorists have complained about the condition and security of the car park, with one driver claiming online that his vehicle was vandalised after being left there for just a few hours. Inhabitants live in grim conditions over two floors, with tents, blankets and belongings piled up on the urine-soaked floor Some of the disturbing images show waste and discarded underwear on the ground just a few feet from shoppers’ cars One devastated driver was left furious after someone tried to break into his car using a concrete block at the Reading car park.

The motorist, Danny Chilvers, shared an image of his badly scratched Audi parked in a bay on social media. He fumed: 'Someone tried to break into my car with a concrete block, literally happened on my birthday, at civic B car park. 'I called and there's no CCTV around apparently, police contacted. Be a bit cautious parking here.' He added: ‘I’m going to see if the council can be held liable. 'If they were aware of this being a persistent problem and failed to take measures, then they should be.’

A local resident blamed the 'tent people living by the entrance', adding: 'God knows why they are allowed to stay there.’ Another wrote: ‘Just claim the insurance and make your peace with it. Dealing with the council will be like talking to a brick wall.’ Other drivers said they park at Riverside car park in the town 'because it’s convenient and feels safe, even if it’s expensive'. Another complained about smashed glass from apparent break-ins, while a third described the premises as poorly lit and lacking visible CCTV.

The car park has 170 spaces and charges around the clock. Footage taken upstairs by the court shows rats scurrying along the ground. Tent 'shanty-towns' have now begun to crop up in other car parks across the UK, with recent encampments reported in Nottingham and Gloucester. The sites are popular with rough sleepers as they are dry, secure and usually central, it's believed. This development comes after the Mail’s investigations into homeless encampments across central London, including Mayfair, Oxford Street, Shoreditch and The Strand, among others.

The number of people sleeping rough in England has reached a record high, with an estimated 4,793 people bedding down on the streets on a single night last autumn. The figure represents a 171 per cent increase since 2010, according to the latest annual Government figures. More recent statistics revealed that an estimated 8,748 people slept rough at some point during June this year, the highest number recorded for that month. Meanwhile, a record 135,580 households were living in temporary accommodation at the end of March, including 177,530 children.

In Reading, the council recorded 43 rough sleepers during its latest annual count in November 2025, compared with 42 the previous year. A Reading Borough Council spokesman said: 'The Council’s commissioned outreach team at St Mungo’s regularly engages with the small number of individuals camping down at this site, both to check on their welfare and to direct them to the accommodation and support the Council and its partners make available to people sleeping rough in Reading. 'Alongside visits from St Mungo’s, there is continued support for people sleeping rough through the Council’s Rough Sleeping Initiatives Team, winter shelters provided by the charity FAITH between January and March, and seven additional supported accommodation projects offering more than 270 bed spaces for single people and couples who are sleeping rough, or at risk it.

These are all commissioned by the Council. 'This is all in addition to the Council’s SWEP (Severe Weather Emergency Protocol) response, triggered whenever temperatures reach zero degrees or below for three consecutive nights, which activates emergency accommodation to anyone sleeping rough, regardless of whether they have a local connection or access to public funds. 'The Council would emphasise however that despite accommodation being available and being offered, it is unfortunately not always taken up by people sleeping rough. 'We always seek to engage and signpost to the comprehensive support services and bed spaces available in Reading for people who have a local connection to the borough, with a goal to help and direct people to move into safe, stable accommodation. 'We do not advocate a dedicated area for people rough sleeping in tents due to the associated safety risks and the adverse effect of normalising rough sleeping.'