Hostel offers temporary respite for Cumbria homeless

A hostel offering temporary respite for homeless people has opened in Egremont in West Cumbria.

Calderwood House has been developed as part of the Time for Change project, a multi-agency initiative aimed at helping the growing numbers of people in Cumbria, particularly ex-service personnel, who find themselves with nowhere to sleep at night.

Built in the old police station it will provide an emergency stop-off for up to 11 residents at a time, giving them respite for up to six months before they can move on to independent accommodation.

Cumbria's Police and Crime Commissioner, Richard Rhodes, and Rachel Holiday, Calderwood's director, officially opened the hostel which was partly funded through a £130,000 grant from the Home Office Innovation Fund