Charity targets vulnerable 'railway children' in Leeds

The railway station in Leeds is used by more than 100,000 passengers a day

Vulnerable youngsters who spend time in Leeds railway station are being targeted by a charity wanting to help prevent them being exploited.

The Railway Children is now working at the newly-revamped city centre station to care for children from dysfunctional backgrounds.

The charity is working with British Transport Police and railway staff.

Officers and staff can contact them if they think either lone or groups of children are at risk.

Two other schemes are run by the charity at Manchester Piccadilly and London Euston stations. The organisation said Leeds was the third busiest station outside London and "a key hub in the national rail network".

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Officers from the British Transport Police or railway staff who think either a child or group of children may be at risk can contact workers at the charity.

The station's main concourse has been revamped to include a transparent roof as this architect's impression shows

In 2018, transport police dealt with 7,000 incidents nationally where there was "concern for a child's welfare".

Andy Collis, from Railway Children, said it was not just children living on the streets that were at risk in Leeds.

He said: "Some are children who run away [from home] while others may have mental health issues, suffered bullying or have a range of issues.

"The children will be given support but that depends on the complexities of the case.

"We might work with government services on different issues for a child, we're filtering the right support for children."

Gaynor Little, who is in charge of the scheme, said: "The Leeds project is an important step towards achieving our aim of creating a national safety network for children who put themselves at risk.

"Public transport and areas surrounding major stations can be a hot spot for young people who have run away, which also makes them a great spot to find and intercept them, before they end up in even greater danger."