An empty house hotline has been launched in a bid to re-house homeless people in Oxford.

The city council is so keen to find vacant private and housing association houses that anyone calling the new action line could win a "slice card" - a discount card for Oxford's leisure facilities.

Earlier this week, it was estimated that more than 300 homes were standing empty across the city, and more than 5,000 were lying idle across the whole county.

As part of National Week of Action on Empty Houses, council officers are now urging members of the public to notify them of any neglected property.

Housing director David Magor said: "There are 1,000 families in temporary accommodation. Obviously, some of this is good quality, but some are hostel type housing. There is also a total of 4,000 people on our housing waiting list.

"If we find a privately-owned vacant home we would investigate it and find out why it is empty.

"We would try to get the owner to rent it out or sell it. We may be able to buy it ourselves, but we have to be realistic that we don't have that much money.

"However, my colleagues in environmental health do have the powers to bring housing in disrepair back into use. This is just part of our continuing battle to use housing stock.

"Oxford's housing is in such high demand that if a property is lying empty then it's verging on a tragedy."

It is hoped that the action line will encourage people to report property that is not already on the council's empty housing list.

The city council has a policy to re-let its own vacant properties within the quickest time available so that they can be re-housed. Mr Magor said: "An average family-sized council property takes four weeks to fill and we have done a lot to get the time limit down quite dramatically - it used to be seven weeks.

"Obviously, sometimes we have to make essential repairs, but we try to get these done as soon as we can."

Empty homes can also be reported at the council's local services shops in Bullingdon Road, east Oxford, Banbury Road, Summertown, and Maltfield Road, Northway.