Former Stoke City Manager Lou Macari to open new homeless centre in Stoke

The former Stoke City Manager, Lou Macari, is to open the homeless centre, named after himself today in Stoke.

The Macari Centre on Regent Road in Hanley will have up to 18 beds to ensure that rough sleepers have a place to go during the cold winter months.

The centre will provide a hot meal and breakfast and will have access to advice, guidance and referral on to other agencies to help them find more sustainable housing.

It will operate on a two-month trial period after cabinet members voted to create a temporary homeless centre in the city on January 19.

Macari has been heavily involved in the project and has said that he is “pleased” about its opening.

The centre will cost approximately £150,000 to refurbish and run and will be funded through a contingency fund.

The leader of the city council, Dave Conway, has said that homelessness is a growing problem in the area and that “doing nothing” was not an option.