7th March 2011

Andover sleepers show their support for Alabaré

A group of dedicated fundraisers have shown their support for homeless charity Alabaré by camping out in Andover.

On Friday (4th March) 11 people dug out their sleeping bags and took to the floor of King Arthur’s Hall for the night. The sponsored sleep out, which has been organised by local fundraisers John Cockaday and Iris Anderson, was to raise money for Alabaré’s work in Andover.

The sleep out is a chance for people to consider some of the challenges faced by those who are homeless at the same time as raising awareness about the work that Alabaré does and raising funds for local projects.

More than £1500 has been raised through the event already and it is hoped that this figure will reach £2000.

Organiser Iris Anderson said of the event:
“The event was a great success and very thought provoking. This is the third time we have run this event in aid of Alabaré and are delighted to be able to support such a vital service.”

Alabaré Fundraiser Tony Richmond added:
“The sleep out isn’t about recreating the experiences of rough sleepers, it is about encouraging people to think about the many issues surrounding homelessness and to raise awareness of and raise funds for the work that Alabaré is does in Andover.”

The sleep out at King Arthur’s Hall was one of a series of events. A number of other sleep out/ins were also held across Wiltshire:

Salisbury Cathedral – Salisbury, Wiltshire. The largest event held which saw more than 90 people take to the cold hard floor of the cathedral cloisters for the night.

St Thomas Church – Salisbury, Wiltshire. This was a smaller scale event which saw a dedicated few curl up in the porch for the night.

Porton Church – Porton, Wiltshire. This event was organised by young people from the Bourne Valley Churches and was hailed a huge success by all.

All Saints Church – Westbury, Wiltshire. A group of supervised young people camped out in the porch.

St Peters Church – Codford, Wiltshire. 16 people slept in the church including 4 children.

Beyond Wiltshire
It wasn’t just in Hampshire and Wiltshire that sleep out/ins took place, there were also events held in Dorset and Bristol:

Nothe Fort  – Weymouth, Dorset.
Pip n Jay’s Church – Bristol. In association with BCAN Homelessness Forum.

The money raised at these events will go towards the work of Alabaré projects local to them.