Charities have been overwhelmed by members of the public offering cash, practical support and even rooms in their own homes to assist Syrian refugees, a crisis summit has been told.

A taskforce is being set up by the Scottish Government to establish the capacity in housing and support for refugees coming to the UK.

It followed a meeting, convened by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, and attended by council leaders, charities, churches, political leaders, refugee organisations and refugees in Edinburgh.

Neil Mathers, head of Save the Children in Scotland, said the consensus among those present was that Scotland could and should do more. He added: "Over the last two to three days we have been inundated with calls from people in Scotland who want to offer support either by giving money but also opening their homes to refugees."

Other agencies including the Scottish Refugee Council had reported similar experiences, he said. "People are phoning up saying 'we've got space'. Many people were telling a similar story. Individuals are phoning up charities offering Places in their own homes, donations and financial support."

"There was a sense that we need to harness that public support but we need to find a way to coordinate that help in the most effective way," Mr Mathers added.

The group also discussed some of the practical issues including how appropriate housing can be made available at a time when there are already shortages of social housing in most areas of the country, and other challenges including providing translation and education services to refugees.

Ms Sturgeon plans to reconvene the group in a fortnight's time and is to set up a task group to plan practical steps to welcome upwards of 1000 refugees to the country.

Chaired by International Development Minister Humza Yousaf, it will work to establish capacity in a range of matters such as housing, health services, language support, transport and social services.

The group will also examine how the goodwill of the public can be harnessed with humanitarian organisations reporting a huge number of offers of help from individuals and groups across the country.

The First Minister said discussions at the summit would be summarised and sent to the Prime Minister as part of a positive offer of support from Scotland as the UK responds to the crisis.

Earlier, Ms Sturgeon criticised the UK Government, accusing it of "struggling to show leadership in this refugee crisis".

People across the world have been shocked by images of desperate families seeking safety, with Ms Sturgeon admitting she had been reduced to tears by the picture of a drowned Syrian boy who was washed up on a Turkish beach.

She said such images would "haunt our consciences and reputation for many generations to come if we don't together and collectively act to help those in desperate need".

The First Minister said: "Today's summit was focused on looking at some of the practical issues involved and I have now established a task force to co-ordinate Scotland's response, working with local authorities, public agencies and third sector organisations to ensure that any refugees that come to Scotland will be able to integrate successfully.

"As a first step, I expect the taskforce to examine capacity in a range of services in Scotland, including housing, health and social services.

"The taskforce will also have a hugely important role in harnessing the many, many expressions of goodwill and offers of help from the public in Scotland, providing a focal point for that activity and ensuring that the wider Scottish community is able to play its part in welcoming people to our country."

Ms Sturgeon said she wants to "work constructively" with the UK government and welcomed the Prime Minister's pledge for further support today but called for more detail on the plans.

She said: "The people we see crowding on railway stations and wading ashore on Europe's southern and eastern frontiers are not willing migrants, they are desperate, frightened and vulnerable human beings forced to flee their homelands often in fear of their lives.

"The fact that so many are prepared to risk their lives and risk the lives of their children to get to Europe should be proof enough of that."