YMCA Lincolnshire and The Nomad Trust have failed to reach their target of £10,000 for last month’s ‘Sleep Easy’ event.
The night in the open, which saw 40 volunteers spend a night sleeping rough inside Lincoln Cathedral, has raised almost £9000 for a new night shelter in Lincoln.
Volunteers created shelters from cardboard boxes to experience what it’s like to spend a night sleeping rough on the streets.
YMCA Lincolnshire has extended the deadline for donations to April 18 in order to raise more funds for the project.
Emma Hume, Fundraising Officer for YMCA Lincolnshire, said: “We have many people asking how they can help the homeless or get involved with what we do.
“Whether you’re planning a mud run, bike ride or cake sale, choosing the YMCA or The Nomad Trust to fundraise for could completely change someone’s life for the better.”
‘Sleep Easy’, which took place on Friday March 18, is an annual event supported by YMCAs across the country to raise awareness for homelessness and to improve facilities for people sleeping rough.
Malcolm Barham, CEO of YMCA Lincolnshire, said: ‘It would also mean that the Nomad Trust would, for the first time, be able to offer daytime services. Alongside accessible emergency accommodation, day services have been desperately needed in Lincoln.”
In 2015 more than 200 people in Lincoln alone were in need of accommodation.
YMCA Lincolnshire, which joined with the Nomad Trust in 2013, currently has 121 units of accommodation across the city and provides the only direct access shelter service for homeless people in Lincolnshire.
People who wish to donate to the charity can do so through YMCA Lincolnshire’s JustGiving page – http://campaign.justgiving.com/charity/lincolnshireymca/sleepeasy2016.
