Churchill Living’s Chairman & CEO Spencer J McCarthy spent a night braving sub-zero temperatures to sleep outdoors and help raise over £20,000 for End Youth Homelessness.
He was joined by over 50 Colleagues from Churchill and its management company Millstream Management Services at the Company’s Ringwood, Byfleet and Bromsgrove offices. The team embraced the challenge to spend a cold November night sleeping outdoors in their office car park, to raise awareness and much-needed funds in support of homeless young people across the UK.
Organised by Churchill’s charitable arm the Churchill Foundation, the Sleep Out took place at Churchill’s Ringwood and Byfleet offices on Thursday 7th November, a night where temperatures dipped below freezing. Castle Marquees of Burley kindly provided some basic shelter for Spencer and his Colleagues in Ringwood as they made do with cardboard beds for the night, and woke up to face a normal working day the next morning. The Bromsgrove team will complete the challenge later this month at an organised event in Birmingham city centre.
Churchill’s Chairman & CEO Spencer J McCarthy said:
Homelessness can happen to anyone at any time, and helping to support young people who find themselves in this situation is a cause I feel very strongly about. That’s why the Churchill Foundation chose End Youth Homelessness as one of our main charity partners in 2019, and why I was keen to take part in the Sleep Out challenge to experience just a small taste of what life is like for the people we’re supporting. I’m very proud of our team for braving the cold conditions and raising such an impressive total to date.
End Youth Homelessness is a UK-wide movement of local charities that have joined forces to tackle youth homelessness together. It provides a national platform to raise awareness, share experience and generate voluntary income, working to end youth homelessness on a national scale to give vulnerable young people a future. Its member charities house and support over 30,000 young people facing homelessness each year.
Sofia Haque, Head of Fundraising and Communications at End Youth Homelessness who attended the Ringwood event, said:
It was a pleasure to attend Churchill’s Sleep Out and I’d like to say a big thank you to Spencer and his team for making the event happen and raising such a fantastic total. It was a lovely atmosphere with everyone full of enthusiasm and creating a wonderfully “in it together” feel. Events like this really help us to support the thousands of young people facing homelessness all over the country. I hope everyone who took part managed to enjoy the experience and get some sleep!
Donations can still be made here (Spencer’s individual page).