'No places left in hostels and also not enough emergency accommodation'

The Sunderland Soup Kitchen founder has said there are no places left in the hostels and there's not enough emergency accommodation for homeless people.

- by Neil Fatkin

Andrea Bell at Sunderland Community Soup Kitchen.

Andrea Bell's comment comes after photographs appeared on social media showing people appearing to have set up temporary homes at some of the city’s bus shelters.

A shelter on Chester Road, close to Sunderland Royal Hospital, showed a bed, a chest of drawers with what appear to be toiletries on a washing line with clothes hung up to dry, and a makeshift carpet made from cardboard.

The second photograph is of a bus shelter on Kayll Road, which has a mattress and bedding, with the shelter’s seat appearing to be used to store personal belongings.

Photographs taken by the Echo show the sleeping setup on Kayll Road still remains.

Whilst the chest of drawers and washing line in the bus stop on Chester Road appear to have gone, the camp bed and mattress are still in place.

Located on High Street West, Sunderland Community Soup Kitchen was set up by Andrea in 2019 to help tackle poverty and hunger in the city.