St Petrocs, a charity working to end homelessness in Cornwall, worked with more than 1,100 individuals in 2021.

It says it has seen unprecedented demand for its services this year, with a higher number of people accessing support than ever before.

“We worked with 119 people sleeping rough in October, the highest number we have ever worked with in one month,” said a spokesperson.

“This is a 26% increase compared to the previous month, a sign of the times we are working in. 

“As more people struggle to afford the essentials, including rent, prevention becomes a key area of our work.

“The longer someone stays on the street, the greater the risk they will be stuck without secure accommodation for the long term, so our focus is on rapidly rehousing people into suitable accommodation.”

Donations made to the St Petrocs Winter Appeal will help the charity to provide accommodation for more people in the coming weeks and months: one new house has just opened and the charity is working toward opening another.

As well as accommodation, St Petrocs provides advice for those facing the loss of their home, mobile support, including twice-weekly outreach in Liskeard, and three resource centres in the county.

At the centres people can shower, wash laundry, and store belongings, get help to find accommodation, access medical services and counselling, and obtain general advice on housing, benefits, and independent living.

A skills, training and employment programme is also run by St Petrocs.