The SASH Sleep Out 2019, held at Bootham School. Picture by David Harrison.
Sleepout fundraiser cancelled but charity urges donations to help continue vital work
SASH’s (Safe and Sound Homes) annual Sleepout fundraiser, due to be held in York on Friday 3rd April, has been cancelled due to safety concerns surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak.
As ever, the health and well-being of staff, young people, hosts, volunteers and supporters is extremely important to the charity – and never more so than during this unsettled time.
The York-based Sleepout is the charity’s biggest fundraiser and this year was expected to bring in around £30,000 of vital community income.
Like many other local charities, SASH’s work is only possible with the generous support of many people. From the volunteer hosts who offer space in their homes for young people facing homelessness, to the incredible generosity of local supporters who donate time, money and resources to help young people in our community.
Event organiser and Community Fundraiser at SASH, Jenna Goodridge said: “We are heart-broken to have to cancel such a significant fundraising event for the charity but the safety of supporters must come first. We’d like to thank those who have already fundraised and urge others to donate whatever they can to help us continue our work.”
SASH now needs your support more than ever to help us to continue keeping local young people safe, especially during unsettling time. The charity are asking supporters to donate via this page to help reach the £30,000 fundraising target allocated for the annual Sleepout. Whether or not supporters were signed up to this event, they can still help young people in Yorkshire facing homelessness by donating.
Community Fundraiser, Jenna, talks to Sleepout supporters via social media.
Throughout this outbreak, SASH continues to place young people in need of a place to stay through our Nightstop service (where both the young person and host are willing and without signs of illness). The charity will also continue with placements in our Supported Lodgings scheme for young people who cannot return home. You can find out more about how our operational work is affected here.
At the soonest possible opportunity, SASH aims to return to providing our vitally important services to young people in need. Help from supporters will be crucial in these turbulent times.
Notes to Editors
Contact: For more information, please contact Thea Burden (Communications Co-ordinator at SASH) on thea.burden@sash-uk.org.uk.
About SASH (Safe And Sound Homes)
- SASH works to prevent youth homelessness across North and East Yorkshire
- SASH provides an emergency accommodation placement service called Nightstop, where young people are placed with volunteer hosts for up to two weeks.
- SASH also provides a longer-term placement service, Supported Lodgings, with volunteer hosts for young people who cannot return home and cannot yet live independently.
- Ordinary citizens who are concerned about young people and homelessness apply to SASH to become hosts – they are assessed, DBS checked, trained and our Host Coordinators support them.
- The young people we work with are often vulnerable. SASH’s Young People’s Co-ordinators support them through their placement. Loneliness, poor mental health and self-esteem are all issues which can affect young people who’ve faced homelessness. Our SASH Active programme connects young people helped by our services through residential trips, valuable life-skills workshops as well as other enriching experiences.
- All young people SASH works with are referred through councils and other local organisations after presenting as homeless.
