Homeless teenager 'fears for his safety' while staying in Glasgow hotel

A homeless teenager “feared for his safety” while staying in a Glasgow hotel.

Adam Taylor claims he thought he was going to be “eaten alive” by insects while staying at the Queen's Park Hotel last month.

The 17-year-old, from Clydebank, used the service for eight days after becoming homeless following his 16th birthday.

Adam's mattress at the hotel (Image: source)

Adam shares his experience (Image: source)

Adam said: “I was afraid for my safety while staying at the Queen's Park Hotel.

“I thought I was going to be eaten alive by bugs and woke up constantly covered in red marks.

“The conditions were disgusting. The mattress was stained, the smoke detector was loose, the furniture was broken and the kettle was burnt.

“There are a lot of drugs, alcohol and violence in the hotel. I couldn't believe they put a teenager in there.

“I am shocked that the city’s most vulnerable people are left to suffer like this.

“More needs to be done to prevent homeless people from ending up in these conditions. Everyone deserves decent housing and a roof over their heads, no matter what.

Adam claims the red marks are from insects biting him in the hotel. (Image: source)

The fire alarm is Adam's room (Image: source)

We previously reported how Adam shared images from his room while staying at the Southside property.

He spoke as part of our End the Homeless Hotel Shame campaign with the Govan Law Centre.

We are calling for a rigorous inspection regime to force landlords to improve conditions. That the Scottish Government provide funding to ensure there is enough social housing and that the UK Government compensate Glasgow for the high number of asylum seekers and refugees who are left homeless.

Adam is now in temporary accommodation and is working on finding somewhere to live soon.

He hopes to help young people like him who find themselves in similar situations.

Adam speaks (Image: source)

Queen's Park Hotel (Image: source)

Adam said: “Glasgow really needs more services to help the homeless and improve the existing ones.

“It would be good if they listened to people who have actually lived on the streets to find out their needs.

“I want to try to become a social worker so I can help people like me, especially young people in difficulty.

“I volunteer with Homeless Project Scotland and see how much people are suffering. Nobody wants that, someone has to do something.

The Glasgow Times and the Govan Law Center have launched the End the Homeless Hotel Shame campaign. (Image: source)

The hotels used by Glasgow City Council to accommodate homeless people are private, commercial businesses.

Landlords are expected to put corrective measures in place, with local authorities allowed to inspect on a voluntary basis.

In this case the hotel has had the room inspected by a pest control service and the mattress and kettle have now been replaced.

The council claimed the smoke detector had not been broken when the service user was placed in it, which Adam refuted.

When the Glasgow Times contacted the Queen's Park Hotel, we were told no one was available to speak to the press.