ROUGH sleepers told how they were left stranded 30 miles away from their support network after being sent to emergency accommodation on a one-way train ticket.

Sean Stace, 50, and Kevin Mead, 62, pleaded with Basildon Council for help when the temperature plummeted to zero in February.

The authority put them up at the Oasis Hotel, in Harlow, for one night. It has been used as temporary housing since 2012.

The pair were given a one-way train ticket via London - leaving them stranded in an unknown town the next day.

Basildon Council has since apologised.

Mr Mead, who has been homeless for a year, said: “The temperature was dropping to zero that night, so three of us asked the council for shelter, so we didn’t freeze to death.

“They put us up in a hotel in Harlow, so we had to get a train into London then back out to Harlow.

“The next day was frightening. We were miles from our support networks, it was cold and we had no way of getting home.

“We didn’t have a choice. We could have either stayed in Basildon and froze or gone to Harlow with no way home.

“It’s so important to keep warm.”

Mr Mead, who suffers from severe anxiety and depression, was forced to ask a charity worker for the return fare.

Mr Stace, who has epilepsy, managed to get back to Basildon using his council-issued bus pass.

He said: “We didn’t mind, it was so cold, and when we got there the hotel was nice. It felt good to be warm, and it even had a telly.”

Sky Butcher, 52, and Toni Groves, 28, run Homeless Help in Basildon.

They have helped to feed and clothe Mr Stace and Mr Mead since they became homeless - as well as other rough sleepers in the town.

They are urging Basildon Council to create a permanent homeless hostel in the borough.

In a joint statement, they said: “It’s heartbreaking. It’s inhumane. The council would have known they wouldn’t have been able to get back to their support network.

“These people need a shelter. we have been banging our head against the wall to help them.”

A Basildon Council spokesman said: “We have listened to the concerns of those involved and apologise for any inconvenience not having a return ticket may have caused them. We have since reviewed our policy and will be issuing two way travel warrants in future.”