A report on Malvern Hills District Council's approach to homelessness has identified a number of key areas for improvement.

The review was conducted by a panel of members from the authority's overview and scrutiny committee.

Several recommendations were made to improve the service to local homeless people.

Since 1995, the council has employed Elgar Housing Association to investigate homelessness and provide 24-hour-a-day emergency accommodation. Eligibility is decided upon by council officers.

The panel said the current system worked well, with performance above the national average, but found that incidents of homelessness were increasing.

Unless services are enhanced, the issue would be become difficult to contain.

Panel members recommended that the council employ a dedicated homelessness worker. The officer would be responsible for dealing with other organisations and promoting initiatives to combat homelessness.

The costs involved would be around £25,000 a year, but the nature of the job could be deserving of funding from outside agencies.

Also recommended is the setting up of a Nightstop scheme. The initiative is already in use in Redditch and is a priority for other areas.

A number of volunteer households act as hosts for one or two nights for youngsters, who may be in the midst of a family dispute. The homelessness worker could work with the host households and enable mediation services to resolve family issues.

A homeless support team could be set up by Elgar to work with social services, probation, health and other support services. It would try to reduce 'serial homelessness'.

Provision of long-term housing was highlighted by the panel. It recommended that various council sites should be utilised for affordable housing and more support should also be given to landlords.

Provision of affordable housing is a key part of the draft Local Plan, which is laying down the development of the area until 2011 and will go out to public consultation in January.

The panel's report will be discussed by the council's executive committee next month.