Billboards and digital screens raising awareness of rough sleeping in the capital will be used in a bid to tackle homelessness.

This comes as part of a campaign launched in November by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan when he installed 35 contactless donation points across the capital.

The £200,000 collected through them so far has gone to a group of 22 charities tackling homelessness.

Mr Khan said: “It is a national disgrace that so many people are being forced to sleep rough, and we know that compassionate Londoners want to help in any way they can.

“These innovative billboards gifted by Clear Channel will help to raise awareness of how to help rough sleepers during the freezing weather.”

Mr Khan also called on the Government to address the causes of rough sleeping in order to end homelessness.

More than 130 billboards and screens will be opened across London and will be triggered by data from the Met Office.

When the temperature reaches zero the adverts will tell Londoners how to direct charity StreetLink to people sleeping on the streets.

StreetLink connects rough sleepers with support services in the capital – so far nearly 10,000 referrals of homeless people by members of the public have been made to the charity.

Emergency shelters for rough sleepers were opened across the capital in December and have already been open for 24 nights this winter.

Boroughs also signed up the ‘In For Good’ principle – a promise that when a rough sleeper goes to an emergency shelter, they will be accommodated there until a support plan is put in place to help them off the streets for good.