Homeless witness
Students at The Mount held a sleepout to raise awareness of homelessness
Pupils at The Mount, the Quaker girls’ school in York, raised awareness of the plight of the city’s homeless by holding a sleepout on 24 March.
The aim of the event was to encourage others to take a compassionate approach to the homeless community by experiencing firsthand what it’s like to sleep rough. The girls warded off the cold in their sleeping bags and cardboard boxes, newspapers and other makeshift items commonly used by York’s homeless.
Year 10 students Orlaith Kelly, Sophie Lofthouse and Anna Long said in a statement: ‘We wanted to find another, active way of raising awareness. We didn’t want to focus on raising money because it doesn’t necessarily make a difference in the long run, but a raised awareness can last a lifetime.’
The pupils’ inspiration came from examining the lives and work of Nobel Peace Laureates, and they wanted to start a local initiative to reduce extreme poverty.
The pupils began the evening with a screening of the film I, Daniel Blake, which deals with poverty and the plight of the modern homeless community.
