Paul, 25, was asked to leave his mother’s home when his drinking, gambling and financial problems spiralled out of control. He stayed with friends for a while and slept on doormats and benches and in boarded up properties, until he found a place at a night shelter and then moved to GROW last month.
He has been dry since November last year and will start a building course at Cementaprise on Monday. He hopes one day to have a home where he can look after his two children, aged seven and three.
Paul said: “I’ve gone from sleeping rough to moving on to a serious course within a month.”
“Being homeless is freezing, cold, damp, scary, dark, gloomy. You never know what’s going to happen. I was really down then. I’ve been getting all the support I need here so I can get on with my life.”