Homelessness charity the Macari Foundation moves to new venue

Pods have provided shelter for homeless people during the Covid pandemic and beyond

A charity supporting homeless people in Stoke-on-Trent has moved to a new site.

The Macari Foundation has transported pods, which provided shelter in the Covid pandemic and beyond, from Hanley to a self-contained apartment block in Stoke.

Since 2016, former Stoke City boss Lou Macari has worked to help the homeless after he saw a news item on the issue.

In an update on the Macari Foundation website, he said the move was the "beginning of a new chapter".

He added, since the pandemic, the charity had had the opportunity to think ahead and decide what it could do best.

The pods were transported by lorry from Regent Road to the new location on Fletcher Road.

The site is run by former footballer and Stoke City manager, Lou Macari

Mr Macari said the pods were "a great success" and the relocation meant the charity was "looking forward to supporting our guests in the best way possible".

The charity helped service users by providing short-term accommodation in the pod warehouse "village", which offered an address, alongside food and support.

The foundation said the new building, called the Victoria, offered residents self-contained accommodation and said in June many users of the previous site were in the process of transferring.

The city council was not involved with the move but it welcomed the Macari Centre's work to support city residents.