PEOPLE are again being invited to swap their warm beds for sleeping bags and cold concrete to raise funds for youth homelessness.

The Sleep Out event, run by charity Centrepoint alongside Barnsley Football Club, is now in its third year and has raised more than £30,000 on each occasion, with more than 100 local residents and businesses last year spending the night at Oakwell Stadium.

Money raised from the event – which this year takes place on November 14 – goes directly towards services supporting homeless people in Barnsley, with more than 60 young people helped by the charity every day in the borough.

Chloe Sykes, Centrepoint’s senior fundraising officer, said: “While Sleep Out doesn’t aim to replicate the reality of homelessness, taking part in can help highlight just some of the difficulties faced by young people who face homelessness – sleeping on the floor, dealing with the cold and the noise and then facing the next day with very little sleep.

“The event only lasts one night but the money raised will have a huge ongoing impact on those who unfortunately find homelessness as their reality.

“It will help to support vulnerable young people to gain the skills and confidence they need to move on in to education, work and a home.”

For more information and to sign up, visit centrepoint.org.uk/sleepout