A SOCIAL worker who urged high security convicts to take up creative writing has penned a novel.

Richard Hardwick, who worked in Durham’s Frankland Prison, has written a book about teenage homelessness.

He said: "At least half the prisoners I work with have been homeless on the streets and in hostels.

"I’ve seen the link - from young people at risk of offending to young offenders to homeless hostels to high security prisons."

Kicked Out is published by Burning House, priced £7.99.