Plans to turn a former care home into temporary accommodation for homeless people in St Albans city centre have been branded "offensive".

Hightown Praetorian and Churches Housing Association is proposing creating 17 bedrooms with shared bathrooms at St Claire’s in Church Crescent for people who have made a homeless application to St Albans District Council.

More than 100 residents attended a second public meeting to discuss the plans at the Civic Centre on Friday night.

Speaking on behalf of residents, Nigel Povoas, said: "People understand the homeless are a vulnerable group and they deserve a lot of sympathy and help.  This isn’t an anti-homeless issue. This is about this specific proposal in this specific locality. 

"The risk posed by this vast proposal, to a small locality intensely populated as it is by vulnerable groups including children, elderly and the mentally ill is unacceptably high. 

"Those risks are exacerbated by the short stay high turnover element inherent in the proposal. Those risks are worsened yet further again by the intension to house those defined by homeless, who after all are a vulnerable high risk group.

"It is very simple, the proposal as it is should be a non starter. The fact that it has got this far has caused much offence, anger and distress in the local community like I have never seen before. 

"I am already aware of tenants and freeholders in the area making plans to move. It’s going to have an immediate and permanent impact on the locality. 

"This could be an absolute disaster."

Other concerns included the safety of children living near the home.

Nicola Lazarus, on behalf of Hightown, said: "The main objective of Hightown’s proposals is to provide safe, supported housing as temporary accommodation for people who have approached St Albans City and District Council as homeless. 

"In common with many other local councils, the housing department in St Albans has had to resort to using bed and breakfast accommodation to meet the growing need for temporary housing. The proposals were designed to help address this."

The number of households in temporary accommodation in St Albans has doubled from 59 in April 2012 to 118 in October 2014. 

Green councillor Simon Grover said: "I have no problem in a house being used by people that need it but cramming 17 people in to that space is worrying for me, residents and it’s not going to be good for the people that live there - it’s not a recipe for a happy outcome.

"I remain unconvinced by the proposal and am against it in its current form."