Rough Sleepers raise £9,000 for the Homeless

The 18th March 2016 saw YMCA Lincolnshire & The Nomad Trust's annual Sleep Easy event take place at Lincoln Cathedral.

The event saw our individuals sleep rough for the night, with the aim of raising funds in support of a new night shelter for the homeless.

So far, the event has raised exactly £8,764.55, closing the gap on the event's overall target of £10,000.

Joe Hicks, Marketing & Communications for YMCA Lincolnshire, explained how 'sponsors have been unbelievably generous this year; supporting individuals and the cause alike… we've received almost £3,000 in donations following the event.'

YMCA Lincolnshire has extended the sponsorship and donation deadline to Monday 18th of April, hoping to find support from the local community in reaching their target.

The main aim of the Sleep Easy 2016 campaign is to not only help the homeless through the event, but to also raise awareness and encourage the local community to run their own fundraising campaign on behalf of the YMCA Lincolnshire.

'We have many people asking how they can help the homeless or get involved with what we do…' says Emma Hume, Fundraising Officer for YMCA Lincolnshire.

'Whether you're planning a mud run, bike ride or cake sale, choosing the YMCA or The Nomad Trust to fundraise for could completely change someone's life for the better.'

Sleep Easy is an annual event supported by YMCA's across the country, where sponsored participants spend a night making a shelter from cardboard boxes and experiencing what it feels like to spend a night on the streets.

In 2015, over 200 individuals was In need of accommodation within Lincoln, with the work of YMCA Lincolnshire & the Nomad Trust they support currently 152 individuals in accommodation and housing support.

To date YMCA Lincolnshire currently operates 129 units of accommodation, with The Nomad Trust's night shelter housing 21 emergency beds for the homeless. The charity also offers accommodation advice, supported housing for veterans and various other charitable and commercial services across the county.

The new Nomad Night Shelter will aim to provide a minimum of 16 en-suite bedrooms offering 32 emergency bed spaces, alongside 40 apartments over two floors for temporary residents. The build will also have a community café, meeting room, training facilities and a clinical room, to complement YMCA Lincolnshire's St Rumbold Street site located opposite the new build.

YMCA Lincolnshire merged with The Nomad Trust in 2013, to secure and sustain accessible tenancies across the county, as well as ensuring the permanence of Lincolnshire's only emergency access night shelter.

Speaking of the new build, Malcolm Barham, CEO of YMCA Lincolnshire, said 'it would also mean that the Nomad Trust would, for the first time, be able to offer daytime services'; alongside accessible emergency accommodation, day services have been 'desperately needed' in Lincoln.