A homeless charity intends to continue running a project which houses homeless people temporarily in converted shipping containers.

BHT Sussex and QED Sustainable Urban Developments have submitted an application to Brighton and Hove City Council to extend the lease of its Richardson’s Yard properties.

The lease was originally due to end in May 2023.

The 36 self-contained flats at Richardson’s Yard were converted from shipping containers and offer housing for people who might otherwise have been sleeping rough.

Its residents are then eventually moved on into more secure housing.

Richardson’s Yard was originally conceived to help address the housing crisis in Brighton in 2013 with an original lease of five years, which extended for a further five years in 2018.

BHT Sussex is currently liaising with Brighton and Hove City Council to continue with the lease for a further two years.

It is working in conjunction with developer QED to make sure any future transition for existing tenants is managed “empathetically and effectively”.

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The housing association said it continues to work closely with Brighton and Hove City Council to assist in tackling the housing crisis in the city through the provision of a myriad of services which includes homelessness prevention work as well as housing.

Condition inspections of the units have been conducted and BHT Sussex are satisfied the units are still very much fit for purpose and will continue to provide safe and secure homes to the tenants who remain.

To date the development has housed 135 individuals with more than half having moved on to longer-term tenancies within Brighton.

Bernadette Lynch, accommodation for work project manager said: “Having access to refer people to Richardson’s Yard is an invaluable support for residents who are ready to move on to their own tenancy. It has become increasingly difficult to find accommodation where people can move on in Brighton and Hove.

“Richardson’s Yard provides residents a fantastic opportunity, to have their own self-contained accommodation, to build on their tenancy skills and to gain a good reference to help them make plans for their next steps in housing.

“Having Richardson’s Yard available to move residents onto when they are ready enables us to work with more people who are homeless and need our support.”