Campaigners are calling for rich property moguls with empty buildings to provide shelter for the homeless.

New figures reveal homelessness in Manchester is among the worst in the country, twice the national average - and up 40pc from last year.

One in every 177 households is statutorily homeless, which means the council has to, by law, find them somewhere to live.

With the national housing crisis worsening, charity workers say there are waiting lists for ‘99pc’ of hostels in Manchester.

It means the town hall is using B&Bs instead. But with 164 families living in a B&B in March this year, they're filling up.

The time has come for society to act. That’s the message from homeless charity workers who walk the city’s streets every day to talk to rough sleepers.

Their calls for action come as some of the survivors from the devastating Grenfell Tower fire in Kensington, London, prepare to be rehoused in a luxury block nearby.

Nearly 70 flats from the £2bn Kensington Row development have been acquired from the developer by Corporation of London ‘at cost’.

Has the time come for Manchester’s rich property owners with buildings standing empty to follow suit?

Campaigners, speaking as Andy Burnham, Greater Manchester Mayor, distributed the first round of funding from his Homelessness Fund, believe so.

(Image: PA)

Coffee4Craig, Early Break and Street Support Network will share more than £9,000 to help strengthen their efforts to eradicate homelessness across the region.

Viv Slack is from Street Support Network, which works to connect homeless people with the services they need.

She said: “There are a lot of organisations trying to give support, but it’s very difficult for charities to provide housing.

“There are some great people working in the council who care but they are stretched - and there will be more cuts coming and more people coming into the homeless situation.

“We all need to contribute, we need corporate contributions, we need housing. This is a problem we need to solve as a city.”

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

Echoing her call was Hendrix Lancaster, founder of Coffee4Craig which provides support on the streets and a drop-in centre.

He added: “I really don’t agree that people should be investing in property and leaving it empty. Absolutely people should be giving up those buildings to help others.

“We seem to have two ends of the scale in Manchester. We’ve got foreign investors coming into the city with millions and creating these wonderful apartments.”

But he said that’s not serving the homeless community, helping single parent families living in one room, or freeing up the bed and breakfasts used by the council to keep families from sleeping on the streets.

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham vows to tackle rough sleeping in the city

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Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham called for the community to stand together to tackle the growing problem of homelessness.

He said: “It’s not just about throwing money at the problem. It’s about working as a community to put a roof over every head. In 2017 we should be able to do that.

“It’s about using voluntary groups, the generosity of the public - and businesses contributing. If we all chip in, we can solve this tomorrow.”

Mr Burnham said he was aware of the extent of both the homelessness and hostel problems - and accepted there was a housing crisis at every level.

The problem, he said, had been exacerbated by decisions made in Westminster - in particular stopping housing benefits for 18 to 21-year-olds - but insisted Greater Manchester leaders cannot sit back and do nothing.

Mr Burnham said there were ways of tackling the problem at a local level, where there is a shortage of overnight beds, hostel space - and long-term housing.

(Image: PA)

He added: “We have to work on a number of levels to put in place the right accommodation in the right places.

“We need to start building the bricks and mortar to tackle this in the long run that people can truly afford.

“We saw after the attack on May 22 how generous the business community is here in Greater Manchester.

“And I do make a particular appeal to businesses with buildings that could be used - on a temporary basis even.

“We could give them assurance the building would be properly managed, kept secure and no danger would come to it. But by using it we could give people shelter for a period.

“I do want businesses to come forward with offers of financial help - but also the use of buildings.

“That’ the solution - if everyone does what they can we can tackle rough sleeping and homelessness.

“Life is precarious. Any one of us could end up on those streets. The safety net isn’t there like it used to be and we need collective solutions.”

Five ways you can help Manchester's homeless

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Mayor’s Homelessness Fund

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

The Mayor’s Homelessness Fund has reached more than £50,000 in just a few weeks thanks to the generosity of local people, Mr Burnham’s salary, and pledges from the 27 housing associations across Greater Manchester.

Handing over the cash to the first three charities to benefit, Mr Burnham said it was a ‘proud day’ and thanked those who have donated.

Here charity bosses, who thanked those who chipped in, revealed what they will use the funding for - and what they say needs to be done next.

Coffee4Craig

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

First founded to offer coffee to people experiencing homelessness, Coffee4Craig now works across Manchester and Salford providing support for those on the streets and running a drop-in centre offering advice and support, and emergency accommodation.

The charity has been awarded £1,185 to develop its network of 79 volunteers.

Each volunteer will undergo a DBS check to allow them to work independently and provide enhanced support to the homelessness community, including help with accommodation.

Co-founder Hendrix Lancaster said people were struggling to navigate the housing system because of a lack of information.

He added: “People get told ‘you aren’t a priority, goodbye’. But the reality is if you’ve got the right information there are things you can do.”

Street Support Network

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

Street Support Network, a network of homelessness support currently working in Manchester, will receive £5,000 to expand its work across all ten boroughs of Greater Manchester.

The charity makes it simple for people experiencing homelessness, frontline workers, volunteers, businesses and the public to quickly and easily find out what services are available locally through its online portal and app.

The funding will be used to map out organisations and support across the other nine boroughs, so anyone in Greater Manchester can use the website and app.

Boss Viv Slack said: “Rough sleeping is a real situation - others may be close to losing their homes. While there are services out there more and more people are arriving in this situation. Things are being done - but things are also getting worse.

“I feel passionately that we all have to work together, try not to duplicate and find out where the gaps are.”

Early Break

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

Bury and Rochdale-based Early Break has been awarded £3,200 to deliver a 10-week early intervention street and community-based outreach service working with young people - including those travelling across the region on Metrolink. Early Break is a specialist drug and alcohol service, but they also work to stop child sexual exploitation and support the mental health network.

The pilot scheme will also identify young people living in supported accommodation, who are at risk of losing their homes because of substance abuse. Young people will be directed into treatment services and other activities.

Luke Bidwell, manager, said: “What we have seen nationally is a massive under-investment in charities working with the more vulnerable and hard to reach.

“Investing in those is a great grassroots start. But it’s a much more complex issue - and targeting housing providers and businesses could be part of the solution.

“But for us as third sector charities, funding is free, we can’t do it for free, even volunteers need support and resources.”