A homeless pensioner 'lost everything' after someone allegedly burned down his tent in Sutton.

The personal belongings of the 67-year-old man, known as Michael, were lost during the fire in the early hours of March 28 in Robin Hood Lane.

Since then both the Sutton Night Watch Homeless Charity and people in the Sutton community have come forward to provide him with necessities such as clothing and food.

Andy Fulker, director at the Sutton Night Watch Homeless Charity, said: “He’s a 67-year-old man who has been living on the streets for three years now. He’s become very entrenched, as in street life is what he has gotten used to.

“He luckily wasn’t in the tent at the time but somebody set his tent on fire and it had all his clothes in it and all his personal possessions, like letters, sentimental photographs – it’s all gone.

“He came to us last night [March 29] to get some food and he just broke down in tears. He just lost all his stuff.”

A Met Police spokesman said officers were called by the London Fire Brigade to reports of a 'small fire' at around 4am that day.

Police spoke with Michael but the cause of the fire has not yet been confirmed.

A London Fire Brigade spokeswoman confirmed the fire was under control shortly after 4.30am after two fire engines were sent from Sutton fire station.

Mr Fulker believes the support for Michael, after publishing the news on Facebook, had been 'unreal' and has praised the response.

He added: “We’ve given him everything he needs. Another tent, another sleeping bag, we’ve given him new trainers, new clothes. Basically anything that he’s needed, clothes-wise, we’ve sorted him out with it.

"Which is obviously what the community have donated.

“The community spirit after I put it on Facebook has been unreal. Everybody has like sort of stepped forward saying, ‘I can give this, I can give that’. Without the community, it’s the community that helps us do the work that we’re doing.”

But he is still calling on authorities to "stand up and listen and help this man" because "a man of that age should not be on the street".

Mr Fulker said: “It’s just wrong – 67 years old, being made to sleep in a tent – it’s not about just giving him somewhere to live, he needs that support as well.

“Where he has lived on the street for several years, he needs support on how to live again.”