LAUNCHPAD has announced that it has cancel this year’s Big Sleep Out due to fewer sign-ups than expected.
The annual event, which sees participants forego their beds to spend a night sleeping out in the meadow by Whiteknights Campus, was set to take place on Saturday, July 6.
It was the 18th annual outing for the event in a year which has seen a 30% increase on demand for services provided by Launchpad.
The charity has supported those facing homelessness since 1979 through the provision of signposting of useful resources, providing drop-in sessions for legal advice, temporary housing, and skills development.
It provided help for more than 1,400 people last year, including those sleeping rough, people facing unlawful eviction, and those struggling with issues such as debt, addiction, and problems with mental health.
Fiona Keyte, fundraising manager at Launchpad, said: “It was such a difficult and sad decision to make, and we would like to say sorry to everyone who had signed up to support us.
We wanted the Big Sleep Out to be a memorable evening filled with lots of supporters, a strong community spirit and everyone enjoying the entertainment.
We know that cancelling will be a disappointment to everyone that had signed up.
She explained: “We are committed to helping anyone who would like to organise their own Big Sleep Out – at their home, school or workplace and will be promoting ‘Your Big Sleep Out in the coming weeks.
Securing donations is vital, to ensure that we can continue to deliver our much-needed work and we will adapt our activities to make this as easy as possible for our supporters to get involved.”
More information about Launchpad’s work and the Big Sleep Out is available via: launchpadreading.org.uk/your-big-sleep-out
