A shipping container has been transformed to provide a warm, safe space for homeless people.

Staff at the Brighouse offices of property and construction products group Saint-Gobain created the “crash pad” for BASH Local (Brighouse and Surrounding Homeless) after making it the firm’s charity of the year in 2016.

The company called on its suppliers and sister businesses to provide materials and time to turn the 8ft by 10ft into a place where homeless people can spend a night out of the cold and wet this winter.

Hillary Rooke, loss prevention manager at Saint-Gobain, said: “The ‘crash pad’ in its raw state was a shipping container which we obtained from a supplier and our various businesses under the umbrella of Saint-Gobain provided all of the materials free of charge.”

Two teams of contractors working for free took less than a week to work the transformation, installing a timber frame, insulation and cladding, floor, walls and ceiling, a window and a fire door.

Hillary said: “It looks nothing like a shipping container now – more like a posh bachelor pad.”

She said Alison Mitchell, chief officer at BASH, came up with the idea of providing a basic “crash pad.” Said Hillary: “This has been a marvellous community project bringing lots of people together for a common cause and we are very excited to be able to hand this over now to Alison to be used for people in their care in the local community throughout the cold winter months.”

The company has previously provided the charity with Christmas hampers and Easter eggs as well as warm socks in the winter.