‘Champion of the invisible’: blue plaque campaign for pioneer on homelessness

Anton Wallich-Clifford set up homeless venture the Simon Community in the 60s, inspiring other charities. Now supporters want belated recognition for his achievements

His work with people on the streets in 60s Britain dragged the country's approach to tackling homelessness out of the Victorian era.

Anton Wallich-Clifford was an ex-probation officer whose work with the down-and-outs who regularly appeared before Bow Street magistrates court convinced him a top-down, paternalist approach to tackling homelessness was doomed to fail. Instead, he believed there was a need for charities to meet homeless people on their level and earn their trust, a revolutionary approach at the time but one now widely employed.