A GROUP of 23 staff and students from Solihull Sixth Form College braved the cold to sleep outside for a borough homelessness charity.
The sleep out, which took place on October 14, saw participants given a cardboard box and a piece of plastic sheeting to make a shelter to sleep in.
A bonfire was lit to keep everyone warm while lashings of hot tea and soup were handed out to keep spirits high.
Collectively, staff and students raised £300 for St Basils – who work with young people aged 16-25 who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
St Basils help more than 5,000 young people each year across Birmingham, Sandwell, Solihull, Worcestershire and Coventry.
The charity’s services include accommodation schemes, homelessness prevention and support services to help young people regain the stability they need to rebuild their lives.
Mike Padbury, assistant principal at the College, helped organise the event and said he was delighted to support St Basils.
He added: “As staff and students, we are fortunate enough to have a roof over our heads – but this sleep out can at least give us all a flavour of what it is like to sleep rough.
“We did this event for the first time back in 2014 and we were excited to get involved again.
“We were fortunate with the weather, as there was no more than a few drops of rain.
“Staff and students worked really hard to build shelters, some of which were more effective than others.
“We must thank our sponsors, the Co-operative Food store in Solihull and Tesco’s Solihull Extra for donations of boxes, plastic and food items.
“Despite the cold, everyone was determined to enjoy themselves and got into the spirit of the event.”
