A £4m revamp of the Oxford Night Shelter is being aided by a £1.3m contribution from the city council.

The shelter in Luther Street, St Ebbe's, provides emergency accommodation for 50 people.

The new centre will offer only five emergency access beds, while the rest will be taken up by semi-permanent residents, who may stay for up to two years.

There will also be 25 settlement rooms for longer stay residents, and 18 easy access rooms for medium-stay residents. Members of the council's executive board agreed yesterday to pay a contribution of £1.3m from the capital programme towards the project.

No extra staff will be taken on, but existing staff will be trained to provide professional support to help people move into permanent accommodation and find employment.

The transformation is being seen as a continuation of the work of the Street Scene Task Force, which succeeded in reducing the number of rough sleepers in Oxford.

Residents living in the area of Luther Street are concerned the new centre could attract more vagrants to the city, but Labour councillor Val Smith said it was a myth that large numbers of homeless people were travelling to Oxford from other parts of the country.

She said there would be a night shelter element at the new centre, but it would be much smaller.

Cllr Smith added: "People will be given the opportunity to move on to new accommodation and get a job.

"No matter who is in control of this council, the council should recognise that this is a caring project and the right way forward."

Liberal Democrat leader Cllr Corinna Redman said: "This is a venture which has received unanimous support from all political groups.

"Following the redevelopment, there will be more emphasis on helping people to move on, and get their own accommodation."