A former weekly newspaper office is set to become a centre for homeless people following a multi-million pound refurbishment.

The Doncaster Free Press moved out from its Sunny Bar home of 89 years in January 2014 and since then work has taken place to transform the building into flats and other facilities for homeless people.

Now the building has welcomed its first tenant moving into the building – Made By U, a social business initiative re-using carpets by offering them at low prices to those in social housing.

The rest of the building is being converted into a series of self-contained flats, communal areas and other facilities for homeless people, to be run by Doncaster homelessness charity M25 Housing and Support Group, which is also involved with the carpet project.

Doncaster Free Press editor Phil Bramley, third right, is pictured at the opening of the Made By U project, along with people involved with the initiative.

The newspaper is now based at a new office on the corner of Printing Office Street and Cleveland Street, along with staff from sister titles the South Yorkshire Times and the Epworth Bells.

The Free Press reports that the new centre will act as a drop-in base for people on the streets, where they can get help and advice, and is set to open later this year.

Work on transforming the former newspaper office began earlier this year after the plans were approved by Doncaster Council and the basement will be used for lounges, a cinema room and a gym for residents.

The Made By U project is a partnership between M25 and local business Neil Green Carpets and Flooring.

Made By U’s profits will be used to support homeless services and it will provide employment opportunities for those affected by homelessness, who will work as drivers, cleaning technicians and carpet fitters.

Joyce Foster, executive director of M25, said: “This exciting opportunity has arrived at exactly the right moment for M25 and those people we support.

“Made By U will help us do so much more to benefit Doncaster’s economic regeneration and create a better future for improving homelessness services across the borough.”

Neil Green, Made By U project director, said: “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me, having developed the project with M25 and forged relations with environmentally conscious partners around the country to 100pc avoid landfill, and I cannot wait to see the scale of success unfold.

“I have run my carpet business for over 15 years and Made By U is a demonstration of my commitment towards ending homelessness in my local town.”

Made By U aims to re-use carpets to provide affordable carpeting to those in social housing and recycle those that cannot be re-used to make high quality underlay.

Carpets that cannot be re-used or recycled will be used to produce eco fuel pellets.