Our virtual Sleep Easy event raises over £15,000 for homelessness in Cambridge
Our virtual Sleep Easy event, with support from LandAid, raised over £15,000 for our Access to Employment Service (A2E) in Cambridge.
The event was held on Friday 26 March and saw people sleep rough inside or outside their home, including in gardens, baths and kitchen floors.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, 2020’s event had to be cancelled, but this year, with help from LandAid we challenged people to join in with the event online.
On the night, participants had access to an online stream and heard from speakers including those who have experienced homelessness, and members from both LandAid and our team who are working to combat the issue.
A2E is a project that helps young people into sustainable employment. It works on their practical skills – such as creating CVs, job searches, preparing for interviews and filling in application forms – as well as emotional resilience and confidence building.
Since the project launched in January 2015, it has engaged with more than 1,000 people, written, updated and strengthened 600 CVs and seen nearly 300 people enter employment, education or training.
Jonathan Martin, Chief Executive, said: “Given the fact we had to cancel our 2020 Sleep Easy event, we were delighted with the great response we had to our virtual event this time round.
All the funds raised will be going towards our Access to Employment Service in Cambridge which has a hugely positive impact of the lives of our young people.
It was fantastic to see so many raising awareness of the issues around homelessness and contribute towards such a great cause – a big thank you to everyone who took part.”
The 2021 event was sponsored by Urban & Civic, Howard Group, and Morgan Sindall.
Werner Baumker, Group Director – Property, Howard Group, said: “As one of the most unequal cities in the UK in terms of income distribution and housing affordability, Cambridge has some way to go in addressing the unseen inequality.
As a family, the kids and I really valued the opportunity to take part in the Sleep Easy event and camp out in support of YMCA Trinity Group in Cambridge. The 4 degrees Celsius overnight temperature really brought home the tough reality of youth homelessness, and how important it is that we all play our role in making a difference, one young life at a time.”
Each year, we support around 10,000 young and vulnerable people, and communities across Peterborough, Cambridgeshire and Suffolk. Its primary aim is to enable every young person to grow and develop, running initiatives that tackle issues such as youth engagement, youth offending, mental health, access to employment, domestic violence, and crisis support.
A big thank you to everyone who got involved, your efforts will make a huge difference to the lives and futures of young people.
