A depressed man started a blaze at an arson-plagued block of flats as a muddled cry for help, a Court heard.

George Coultous knew he would be captured on CCTV installed to catch firebugs at nine-storey Kelvin House in Dane Court Road, Holme Wood, Bradford, The homeless 52-year-old “wanted someone to see the state he was in,” his solicitor advocate Andrew Walker told Bradford Crown Court yesterday. Coultous was originally charged with arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered, but his plea to simple arson was accepted by the Crown.

The court heard he put lighted paper down the rubbish shute at the flats on November 13, but the fire could not have spread beyond the bins area.

Coultous told police he was depressed and angry, but he denied starting any of the previous fires that had led to increased security at the flats.

The blaze led to a bill for £1,280 to repair damaged fire doors.

Mr Walker said Coultous had no settled home address and was living “from couch to couch.”

He knew the security cameras had been installed and that he would be spotted starting the fire.

Coultous welcomed being arrested as the opportunity to seek help, said Mr Walker.

Judge Jonathan Durham Hall QC sentenced him to 12 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, with an intensive community order and 150 hours of unpaid work.

Judge Durham Hall said Coultous had tried in a muddled way to set fire to the block of flats as a cry for help and it would be “pointless and expensive” to jail him.