New night shelter for rough sleepers in Newcastle-under-Lyme

The three-room shelter will be staffed by volunteers

A new shelter for rough sleepers has opened and will run until the end of March.

The supervised shelter, based in Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, will be available every evening, regardless of temperatures.

It is being run by the council working in partnership with non-profit organisation Veterans Connect CIC.

The three-room venue is staffed on a voluntarily basis by the charity, which also provides food and warm clothes.

Gill Heesom, cabinet member for community safety and well-being, said the shelter was the first of its kind in the borough and the council was committed to tackling rough sleeping.

Official figures for rough sleepers in the borough are in single figures, she added, but it was still too many.

Trevor Bailey, director of Veterans Connect, added: "We are truly honoured to run the night shelter for Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council.

"Our mission statement works on the ethos of stronger together. We embrace this, with this partnership being an example of what we can achieve."

Anyone who wants to donate non-perishable food items, warm clothing and toiletries can do so, he added.