It's a very visible issue in Manchester, especially down Oxford Road and into the city centre via Portland Street, you can see a lot of people sleeping rough, especially early on when I'm getting into town just after 6am on work days.
Probably before shops and businesses are opened up and they are thrown out of doorways, many of which probably need sanitising after, I know in one place I worked it was quite common to also have used needles and drug paraphernalia, urine and excrement. There is also a hygiene issue due to issues like infected leg ulcers due to drug use.
Metal shutters seem to be getting more popular, so no inset doorways, though likely other issues contribute, after the riots, football issues etc...
There always seem to be lots of beggars, it has caused issues with coffee shops, bars and food places which have pavement side seating and I heard a rumour of one thinking of getting security guards to deal with issues such as customers being harassed and getting abuse/aggression when asked to be move on. Intoxication by drink and/or drugs is a further factor.
There can be intimidation by cash points, outside shops, at bus shelters etc... and it getting more common to have beggars asking for money, on buses and trams where, like cafes and such, it is harder to walk away.
It's such a shame as, although some don't want the help, there are shelters and soup kitchens but they don't seem to be helping the issue much. I seem to see far more on a daily basis now than I have over the years.