Award for Runcorn Shopping City's '#Warm the Streets' campaign

Its ground-breaking #Warm the Streets scheme competed against shopping centres around the country for the Revo Purple Apple Marketing Award Order of Merit at a special ceremony in London last week.

Hundreds of homeless people across the North West were helped by the community campaign, after Shopping City converted an empty shop unit into a reception centre to take in donations of duvets, blankets, coats and other clothing.

Working closely with local radio station Wire Fm and homeless shelters, Halton Lodge in Runcorn, Room at the Inn (Warrington) and Brennan Lodge (Widnes), Shopping City Runcorn ran its #Warm the Streets campaign for four weeks in the lead up to Christmas last year.

The generous folk of Runcorn, Widnes and Warrington donated more than 60,000 items of bedding or clothing in the unique venture, which was so successful other shopping centres around the country have pledged to copy it this coming Christmas.

Shopping City manager Karl Clawley said: "We are thrilled to put Halton and Warrington on the map by winning this national award.

"We want to give a massive thank you to anyone who donated or helped with the campaign - we were blown away by the generosity of our local community.

"Someone came in with 300 spare sleeping bags and local Tesco distribution centre community manager David Coleman happened to be walking past and offered us the services of his staff to pack and sort all the donations.

"The fact that homelessness is such a major issue is absolutely shocking in the 21st century. Many of the safety nets that used to be there have disappeared and people are losing their homes due to unemployment, relationship breakdowns and mental health issues.

"It's a heart-breaking situation.

"We originally set out to help our own local community but the response was so amazing that we ended up working with homeless people and charities all over the North West, particularly in the bigger cities where the situation is more acute."