Writing question
Describe a single day from the perspective of a homeless person who lives in London.
Practise this exact question with personalised feedback on your writing.
Understand the task
Portray one day of homelessness in London through a specific individual’s routines, pressures and decisions. Avoid clichés and show complexity, agency and dignity.
- empathetic perspective
- setting
- realism
- sensory detail
Requirements to keep in mind
Describe a single day from the perspective of a homeless person in London.
Plan your response
- Treat the narrator as a full person with hopes and choices.
- Follow the day from morning to evening.
- Use recognisable London sounds and places.
- Show practical difficulties without making assumptions.
- Include a small moment of dignity or connection.
Check your response against the task requirements. Leave time to review sentence clarity, punctuation and spelling.
Original atoply example response
Written by atoply, not an official school answer or mark scheme. Other successful responses are possible.
Reveal example and teaching notes
The first buses began to rumble past before six. I folded my blanket and stood beneath the shop awning, waiting for the rain to stop. London was waking up around me: shutters rattled, tyres hissed on wet roads and commuters hurried towards the station without looking up.
I walked to the day centre for a hot drink and somewhere warm to sit. The volunteer at the door greeted me by name. That simple kindness mattered more than she probably realised. I checked my phone while it charged and read a message about an appointment at the housing office. I had been waiting weeks for news.
At lunchtime, I sat on a bench overlooking the river. A little boy dropped his glove, and I called after him. His father thanked me. For a moment, I felt like any other Londoner, part of the crowd rather than outside it.
By late afternoon, my socks were damp and my shoulders ached from carrying my bag. Still, I arrived early for the appointment and filled in the forms as carefully as I could. The adviser could not promise anything, but she arranged another meeting.
When the streetlights flickered on, I tucked the appointment slip safely into my pocket. Tomorrow was uncertain. At least I knew where I needed to go next.
Learn from the example
- Concrete details build an impression of the subject. Notice how those choices work together rather than reading as a list of general adjectives.
- The viewpoint controls what the reader notices. Choose details and an order that sustain the task's requested perspective and atmosphere.