HOMELESS people are being offered more help to get back on their feet with an increase in the amount of accommodation for them.

Richmondshire District Council has completed renovation work on its homeless persons' unit in Colburn, near Catterick.

Previously, it consisted of 12 individual rooms. Now, however, it has additional living space for up to four households, as part of a separate accommodation unit.

"There's a perception that homelessness doesn't happen in rural areas," said Richmondshire District Council's homelessness officer Kate Calunniato.

"This just isn't the case and, in fact, the number of people needing temporary and longer-term accommodation has increased by 50 per cent in the last two years, due to changes in Government legislation.

"More people who find themselves homeless are now classed as 'priority need', and we must provide somewhere for them to stay while their case is assessed."

The new rules, introduced in the Homelessness Act 2002, resulted in local authorities no longer being able to routinely use bed and breakfast rooms as a long-term solution to housing homeless people with dependant children.

And in the wake of that, Richmondshire has taken action to increase the amount of accommodation dedicated to housing homeless people.

Local councillor Peter Wood, the vice-chairman of the authority's community committee, said: "I'm delighted with the new extension.

"It's a much-needed facility, and it has been finished to a very high standard.

"The residents have commented on the quality of the new accommodation, and we hope it will provide a comfortable short-term solution for people who can be experiencing a great deal of stress in their lives."

As well as the accommodation in Colburn, the authority rents five private-sector lease properties in various locations across the district, with the help of funding from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Richmondshire works in partnership with Hambleton District Council and York Nightstop to provide emergency overnight accommodation for young people. It also supports the YMCA's homeless education programme in secondary schools.