Terror attack pair open prison leaver' hostel

Ex-offender Richie (left) is being supported by Darryn Frost to find work after being released from prison

A hostel for people leaving prison has been opened by two men who tackled a terrorist in a London attack.

Darryn Frost met Steve Gallant when they were involved in the 2019 attack that left two dead during a prisoner rehabilitation conference at Fishmongers' Hall in the city.

They have now set up a social enterprise in Northampton which aims to help ex-offenders get back on their feet.

Mr Frost said the project, named Own Merit after one of those killed, is an attempt to turn the event into "something positive".

John Crilly, Steve Gallant and Darryn Frost chased Khan on to the bridge before armed police arrived

Usman Khan fatally stabbed Jack Merritt and Saskia Jones, and injured three others before being fatally shot by police on 29 November 2019.

Khan was chased from the hall on to London Bridge and tackled by Mr Frost, Mr Gallant - who was on day release from serving a life sentence for murder to attend the conference - and John Crilly.

Khan was then shot at 20 times by armed police.

The conference had been to support those leaving prison and their project provides a place for ex-offenders to live while they find jobs.

Mr Frost told BBC Radio Northampton many inmates were being "released into homelessness" and reoffend.

"If you don't have a home you basically don't have the foundations to build from and most of your options lead to crime," he said.

"We're trying to do a different model where it's not just a hand out from government [that you get] with supported living, it's a way of helping guys just resettle, get their foundations and then start working."

The six-bedroom house in Northampton is a place for ex-offenders to live while they are supported to find jobs

He said the project works like a recruitment agency, where a small commission is charged on any placements the former prisoners get which pays for the lower rent they offer, a rate which continues when they get a job.

"We work with employers who are willing to take a chance, willing to see that people have made a mistake and really want to change," he said.

"Our whole ethos is there is so much talent in prison... all they need is a little bit of stability."

The hostel's first resident, Richie, spent nearly two years in prison and was previously in jail on remand from which he was released homeless and reoffended.

He said this time, living in the hostel, he has a "a good start, a good foundation".

"If you're released homeless you can't get a job because you've got no ID and no address... they leave you in an impossible position," he said.