A homeless man has been rescued from life on the streets thanks to a community’s generosity and one extraordinary young man.

Sonny Green, 23, spotted Constantino Carvalho, 57, in a Southend shop doorway on several occasions and decided to see if he could help him.

Just days after launching a Facebook campaign, Constantino now has new clothes, a new home and possibly a new career in front of him after £1,400 was raised in four days.

Musician Mr Green, from Southend, said: “I saw him in the shop door way and talked to him. I found he wasn’t an alcoholic or a drug addict, he was a genuine homeless person. It wasn’t his fault.

“He’d gone into hospital and couldn’t keep up with his rent because they cut his benefits.”

Mr Constantino was born in Portugal but came to Southend when he was 20. He worked in the town for 25 years, including at the then Evening Echo as a page designer.

Mr Constantino, who is unable to walk more than a few yards because of poor blood flow to his legs, returned to Portugal for 18 months to care for his dying father. The loss of National Insurance payments during that time caused problems with his benefits meaning he had no alternative but to sleep on the streets.

Mr Green said: “I saw he’d been moved on from his shop doorway and was sleeping outside the Salvation Army centre. I thought I had to do something.

“Myself and my friend Jack Roth picked him up and took him for a shower and shave. The barbers, Fitchy in Sutton Road, gave him a shave and hair cut and offered him unlimited free cuts in the future.

“We got him some new clothes and then someone came forward saying they had a room. We raised enough to pay for the room for 25 weeks and he can stay there permanently so he now has an address and should get benefits.”

Mr Green added: “That is proving more difficult because they are treating him as if he were a new immigrant because of his time in Portugal, but we’ll carry on raising money for him. We want to get him a laptop so that he can be self-employed because people have already offered him design work. We also want to get a mobility scooter because he can only walk a short way.

“He was waiting to die basically. A friend who was with him on the streets is in hospital now with a chest infection.

“Constantino has been brilliant and so grateful for what everyone has done for him. He’s very happy and content.”

Now in his warm room, Constantino can barely believe he was sleeping in the cold just five days ago. He said: “I didn’t expect this to happen. I just got chatting to Sonny and it went from there. He has so much energy. It’s been a bit overwhelming. Everyone has been wonderful. It breaks my heart really. He is like the son I never had.”

To help with the fundraiser, visit www.facebook.com/sonny.green2