More than 250 Scots from politics, business and sport, including Sir Chris Hoy, braved the elements to camp out overnight in Edinburgh’s Charlotte Square on December 15.

The participants were fundraising for the Social Bite village project which aims to house up to 20 homeless people in a purpose-built, safe living environment for about 12 months each, from summer 2017.

Taking to Facebook yesterday, Social Bite said: “We are delighted to announce that the total amount raised from the CEO Sleepout event held last month in Edinburgh was £564, 545.64!

“This figure has exceeded our original target of £500,000 needed to build an entire village for homeless and vulnerable people in Scotland.

“Thank you to everyone involved for making the first steps on that journey with us by funding our village project.”

The sandwich chain social enterprise has teamed up with EDI Group and the City of Edinburgh Council for the village in Granton and aims to begin work on the project early this year, with the first residents moving in by the summer.