Spare bedroom volunteers wanted to help homeless people

Sue Antrobus has been a Nightstop volunteer for two years

A woman who welcomed 11 strangers into her home throughout 2021 to stop them sleeping on streets said she was glad to make a difference to their lives.

Sue Antrobus, from Guisborough, volunteers for Nightstop, run by charity DePaul to organise short-term places in homes to homeless people.

The charity said it needed more volunteers to meet growing demand.

One man who was helped by a Nightstop volunteer said being given a bed in a home made him "feel human again".

There are currently 18 Nightstop hosts across the North East.

Volunteer hosts go through training and then choose which nights they could be available at short notice.

Ms Antrobus, who has been volunteering for about two years, said she got involved because she wanted to do something "but I didn't have any money to give to charity".

"My daughter was at university and I did have a spare room," she added.

Ms Antrobus said she liked to provide a "safe, family environment" for the people needing a home

She said although it might seem unusual to let a stranger sleep in your house, she had "never, ever felt uncomfortable or unsafe".

"No matter how nervous I am, they're far more nervous," she said.

"I make sure it's a safe environment, a family environment.

"It's definitely worth doing. It's something so small but could have such a significance in someone's life."

The first Nightstop started in Leeds in 1987. Now there are more than 30 across the UK.

In 2021, across the UK more than 1,500 people were put in to short-term accommodation.

DePaul said the Nightstop model was designed to support people aged 16 to 25, but in the North East it helped anyone aged 16 and above due to demand.

Colin Baker said being treated with kindness "was a bit of a culture shock"

Earlier this year, 43-year-old Colin Baker spent three weeks sleeping in his car.

Mr Baker, who now lives in County Durham, said the Nightstop scheme helped him get back on his feet.

"It might not seem like much to some, but it can mean the world," he said.

"Going from having no help to going in to someone's home... it made me feel human again.

"My host was so welcoming. Being treated with such kindness was a bit of a culture shock.

"I can't imagine where I'd be without Nightstop. Things could have gotten a lot worse.

"I was in a pretty bad place".

The government announced on Friday all councils in England would receive funding from its £654m Homelessness Prevention Grant.