Aaron McNeilly has described life living on the streets
A former homeless man has described how he went from daily drug abuse and living in hostels to running his own successful business.
Read more: Cost of living crisis 'will lead to child deaths' as families struggle to heat their homes "The hostel itself was chaotic and in the end I actually preferred staying on the streets and would hang around at different places around Custom House Square with other people in the same situation. I ended up dabbling in other harder drugs which were a huge part of my life at the time because alcohol was always a bit too expensive.
During his time on the streets there were some people who looked after Aaron and gave him some hope that he could do better. "Even though I was not living with my parents, they were also there for me if I was ever in trouble and continued to help me a lot. The staff in the hostels were also very caring and supported me through some difficult moments."
"I secured a place on a Belfast Met course that I had previously failed, and managed to pass that and got a part time job.