#YMCASleepEasy is back for 2021!

Southend YMCA calls on community to take part in special Sleep Easy event to raise money and awareness in aid of youth homelessness.

Southend YMCA will come together with 11 other YMCAs across England to take part in a mammoth virtual Sleep Easy event on Friday March 26, with the aim of raising vital funds to help tackle the root causes of youth homelessness.

Stretching from Bristol to Northumberland, this year local YMCAs have decided to harness the power of collaboration and community spirt by swapping their usual independent events in favour of one, united Sleep Easy event.

And so, from 7pm on Friday 26 to 7am on Saturday 27 March, hundreds of people across the country will be sleeping anywhere but their beds to raise awareness of the thousands of young people who are made homeless each year, and Southend YMCA is calling on local residents to join them.

Money raised from the event will go towards delivering much needed support for residents and homeless young people.

This Sleep Easy will look different to previous years as COVID-19 has not just had an impact on homelessness services but on fundraising as well. Traditionally, an event that brings lots of the community together in one place, this year will see people going solo or with their families and swapping the streets for bathtubs, sofas or garden tents. It is hoped that this special collaborative event will help Southend YMCA raise more funding than ever in aid of youth homelessness.

Syrie Cox, Chief Executive of Southend YMCA, said:

“As a year, 2020 was more difficult and heart-breaking than anyone could ever have anticipated, but one overwhelming positive that emerged was the power of community and the difference that can make to people’s lives.

“We know from our own experience over the past 100 years that without the support offered by YMCA Southend, many more vulnerable young people would be forced to sleep on the streets with less options and less chance of realising their potential.

“With this in mind, Southend YMCA is calling on the community to sleep somewhere other than their beds and help raise a record sum of money for this special Sleep Easy event. Please participate, donate and nominate to spread the word: one night can make a lifetime of difference.”

Southend YMCA has been providing help and support to young people in the area for over 100 years. Our Newlands building in Southend provides supported accommodation for displaced vulnerable young people and we deliver numerous projects and initiatives each year to engage, inspire and motivate local youth and to develop their moral, cultural and social development.

Southend YMCA is a branch of YMCA England and Wales; the largest voluntary sector provider of supported housing for young people, providing a bed for 8,800 people each night and collectively helping more than 20,000 people experiencing homelessness each year.

For more information or to register for Sleep Easy 2021, please visit our event page.