On Friday 23rd March, 15 students and staff braved the cold to spend the night sleeping in College grounds in a cardboard box as part of the national Sleep Easy campaign.
The sponsored event was to increase awareness of youth homelessness as well as raising much-needed funds for YMCA East Surrey.
The evening started with the challenge of creating individual cardboard shelters for the night, but as the temperatures dropped, the reality of sleeping rough soon hit home.
Everyone completed the night in good humour, but with a new understanding of how terrible it must be to live on the streets. As one student commented, “To keep having to do it would make me so ill. How can you ever give yourself the time to recover if you have to do the same night after night after night?”
Stephanie Whitelock, Community Events Manager at the College, said, “The evening was a real eye opener for us all and a fantastic way for students to find out more about this very real issue. Thank you to everyone who has supported us – the money raised will go directly to YMCA East Surrey and make a real difference to the homeless in our community.”
The event has raised £1781.50, which is a fantastic achievement.
Find out more about Charity events at Reigate College.
