A 'HACKATHON' inspired by a story in the Sunday Herald will bring tech professionals together to tackle the issue of homelessness in Scotland next week.

A Hackathon is an event where people come together and use technology to transform ideas into reality.

Gallus Events director William Thomson, who is organising the event, said he was driven to act after reading about the number of homeless people dying in Glasgow.

“I was stirred into action by a front page article and investigation by the Sunday Herald last year,” he said.

“I felt I had to do something. All I am good at is running events, so I set up the Hackahton. The format of the event offers attendees the opportunity to dedicate some time, doing what they are good at, in the hope they can make a difference”

The event is taking place from April 13-15 in Glasgow and will see organisations pitch projects to be worked on by participants.

Projects already under consideration include developing a risk assessment app to be used by street volunteers, and a Scotland-wide database mapping areas of acute homelessness.

The Hackathon has already had financial backing from Glasgow-based IT recruitment company HRC and the organisers have been in touch with other firms in the sector including Social Bite, Invisible Cities and the Glasgow Homelessness Network.