Young Reporter of the Year

Young human rights reporter of the year 2012 - primary school runner-up

Lorna Williamson wrote about the plight of the homeless. Photograph: Graham Turner for the Guardian

Homeless

I'm cold. I'm shattered. My hands are searing with the coldness. I've got no job, and nowhere to live. I'm all on my own, with no one to comfort me. Every night I go through this agony. Will I be mugged? Will I be kidnapped? Will I be hurt? No one cares about the homeless. They wouldn't even know if I was gone. Even if they mugged me there isn't much to take. All I have is the grubby, old clothes I'm in and a muddy, ripped blanket. I have a burning sensation in my stomach. The agonising hunger in my gut. This feeling is familiar. The rain is thrashing down around me. I am soaked to the skin. Human rights? You're joking; mine have been taken away. The recent winters were so cold that I could feel my life slowly fading away. My dreams of warmth, food and comfort have long been given up.

On average in England it is estimated that 498 people sleep rough each night and 248 of those are in London. 84,900 households are classified as homeless. Homeless doesn't have to mean sleeping on the streets, but can mean a temporary dwelling. Homelessness is abusing six human rights listed by Amnesty International. My wish is that we re-home all homeless people, as some may have not had a chance in life or that homelessness is not their fault. It is not fair that people live in huge, luxurious mansions when people are sleeping rough on the streets