Volunteers in Leeds wanted to look after dogs for the homeless during extreme cold

Could you look after a dog for a homeless person?

Leeds Council says it people in the past have experienced issues because their dogs have been 'a barrier to accommodation'.

SNOW: Met Office upgrades forecast to amber alert for LeedsNow the authority is offering a foster scheme with Leeds Housing Options, where the council will pay for kennels or vaccinations for rough sleepers' dogs or find volunteer pet fostering placements.

A spokesman said: "Leeds Housing Options and hostels do not turn people down if they don’t have a benefit claim and will never ask anyone for money to access emergency accommodation.

"We know some people have had a bad experience in supported accommodation and we do have other options so if you are worried about someone encourage them to speak to us.

"Some homeless people have dogs which has been a barrier to accessing accommodation in the past, to overcome this we work in partnership with dog’s trust on a foster scheme, we’ll pay for kennels and vaccinations or match up placements with volunteers.

"We know separation is hard and this would be for a minimum amount of time until we secure long-term accommodation, often offering landlords double bonds to allow pets in the property.

"If you want to volunteer as a temporary dog carer for someone accessing emergency accommodation get in touch on [email protected] with the subject ‘Dogs’

Street outreach are covering the city every night this week and LHO managers will be going out several times a day to offer housing. If you are worried about anyone sleeping rough call 0113 2224412 or 07891273939 after 5PM.

Weather warning: Tuesday's hour by hour forecast for Leeds