Sleepout is happening this month!
On the 29th October, over 100 people (hopefully) will be either sleeping at Pirelli Stadium or joining us virtually.
This will be Burton YMCAs 13th Sleepout and this will be the 6th one I’ve been involved in. It’s always a busy but exciting time. The sign-ups, the stories we hear, the support we receive from volunteers and businesses is always so humbling.
Last year, as with everything, we had to adapt to the changes and challenges that Coronavirus threw at us and that saw us hosting our first virtual Sleepout, with the help from the amazing Edd and his team at Scorpion Event Solutions, we were able to bring you a live stream to stay connected to our supporters. It was an amazing experience where we remained together-apart, but we are so excited to be able to have the event back in-person this year and to welcome you through the gates of Pirelli Stadium once more. For you virtual Sleepouters, we will still remain connected to you with posts and live videos via our Facebook page.
So, with just over two weeks to go our office is a hive of activity and dare I say – stress!
Amongst the many jobs it takes to make such a big event happen, we are continuing to review risk assessments and keeping an eye on the latest Covid19 developments and making sure we have enough staff members and volunteers in place to ensure it is as safe as can be for you.
Around 10 members of staff and 30 volunteers will be on hand to show you where to register, where you will be sleeping, where to collect your box and find a hot drink and the running order for the evening.
Each Sleepout participant is given one large box to sleep in (or on top of) and we are bringing our boxes out of storage to make sure they are ready to be used. This year, to minimise the plastic usage, we are not supplying bubble wrap but asking you to bring a sleeping mat if you like.
We operate a soup kitchen at the Sleepout and so we are making sure we have enough quantities of cuppa soups, coffee, tea and hot chocolates ready for our volunteers to make up and distribute.
The cups have been generously donated by the team at Subways again.
We are getting the sound system ready and we are happy to welcome back our busker, Chris Baldwin who will be singing a set before getting into a sleeping bag and participating himself.
We will be prepping the overnight staff who will stay on site for your safety and can lend an ear if you are struggling to sleep.
Planning doesn’t stop there, in the morning, you will be woken up with the smell of breakfast wafting up through the tunnels which will be cooked by more amazing volunteers and you will be able to collect a hot drink and a butty before packing up your box and heading home for the day.
One of the final jobs is to collate all the participants details and sponsorship money raised so far ready for our CEO Paul Laffey and President Ben Robinson to reveal during the Sleepout night.
So, on the evening of the 29th October, as we check you in, we should be happy in the knowledge that everything has been done and we are ready to give you an unforgettable evening of raising awareness and fundraising for homelessness.
Thank you for supporting us.
Words by Connie who works within the Media, Comms and Fundraising team
