Nottingham CEO Sleepout 2024

We did it! What an amazing experience!

For some this was again, others for the first time.

During the run up to this year’s CEO Sleepout in Nottingham I’ve used this image a number of times and blimey does it pack a powerful punch tonight!

If we weren’t grateful before last night we certainly will be tonight!

Last night 62 big-hearted Nottingham business folk became a community - well, that's how it felt to me!

What an incredible group of people!

You truly did a great thing last night, by giving up your comfy bed for a night out in the cold, raising money that could change someone's life; someone you may never meet.

Your efforts mean that the CEO Sleepout UK and Emmanuel House Support Centre , The Friary Drop-In and Notts County Foundation , our local frontline charities, can do even more to help people who really do need it.

Here’s a some thoughts from just a few of those who took part this year . . .

Gary Digva?? said “This experience has given me a fresh perspective on the daily struggles so many face. The night was an eye-opener; every sense was heightened. The cold, the fear, the vulnerability. Although we were in a controlled environment, the discomfort and the underlying danger felt very real. I chose to fast during the experience, allowing me to better understand the hunger and hardship that often accompanies life on the streets.”?

Gary went on to say ?“What I take away most from this is the profound resilience of those who face these conditions daily.”

Darren Jones said “I can confirm that concrete does not make for comfortable bedding, though I was grateful for my 2nd bed of the night, the pitch perimeter, which did allow me 2 hours of sleep. Giving up one night in my warm, cosy bed to help was a privilege, as we were raising essential funds for the three amazing Nottingham charities who support the 4000 local people who sleep rough every year.”?

He went on to say “even having done this, I can’t actually conceive how it must feel to sleep rough, alone, and to be exposed to the city environment. Hopefully, this is something none of us will ever experience”.

Molly Reek , part of Team Buckles Law , posted on LinkedIn “Last night was an incredible, eye opening and humbling experience. Also - VERY uncomfortable and cold.” Adding “We learnt last night that it costs Emmanuel House nearly ￡140,000 to provide 30 emergency beds each night during the winter months to keep people safe and off the streets - this money will go directly to that cause, literally saving lives. We also heard from a truly inspirational man, Wesley Milligan, about his story of becoming homeless, how he has turned his life around with the help of local charities and what his plans for the future are.”

In an early morning post Nottinghamshire Deputy Lieutentant, Mark Goldby DL wrote ‘‘5:30 woke up after a horrible night’s sleep. ?I’m lucky I can go home now!’

Mark added an emotional video to his post in which he said “So, I’ve just woken up and it’s one of the worse things I’ve ever been through.? I’m not cold thankfully, I’m not wet thankfully, but this is the most uncomfortable, horrible night’s sleep, if there was any”

He went on with a heartfelt request ?“do me a favour, don’t buy that extra large coffee today buy a small one and the couple of quid that you save stick it in my donation pot please, it really will help people not having to do this s**t every night.? Thank you.”

Please, have a think about this . . . ?

If we all did this regularly, taking the difference in cost between a large and a small coffee, and donated that difference to one of the many charities supporting homelessness how much would this add up to over a year?

You can do the math.? I can tell you the collective difference would be massive.

The energy last night was wonderful, the commitment was heart-felt, the reflections continue.

Tonight we all go to bed grateful we have one.

Let’s keep those donations coming in.

Let’s create a movement.

Let’s get even more people behind CEO Sleepout Nottingham in 2025!

Let’s keep doing this until we don’t have to.

I am pleased to announce at the time of sharing this article last night we raised a wonderful ￡46,000 and climbing!

Some thank yous

Thanks to Notts County Football Club for hosting us.

Thanks to Doughnotts for the doughnuts - to Treat Kitchen for our sweet treats, to 200 Degrees Coffee Roasters for hot drinks and the Rapid Relief Team (RRT) United Kingdom for providing a welcome breakfast.

Special thanks to Wes Milligan

Wes courageously shared his lived experience with us through words and music giving us a deeper understanding of so many elements of the complexity of the world of those who live with homelessness, poverty and much much more – lots of reflecting going on amongst this year’s sleepout participants I know. ?

Thanks for the Lord Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire, Professor Veronica Pickering MBS HAC HM Lord-Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire for joining us during the evening, taking time to speak with people taking part, listening to the charities share insights into their work and leaving us with praise for our commitment and encouragement for the night ahead.

And, finally . . .

On behalf of myself, as Ambassador in Nottingham for the CEO Sleepout UK , the CEO Sleepout team Bianca Robinson , Henrietta MacEwen , Jane Madden , Dan Murphy and Andy Preston and local charities Emmanuel House Support Centre , The Friary Drop-In and Notts County Foundation , our beneficiaries across Nottinghamshire and the people who you may never meet but who's life you will help to change - THANK YOU!

What a team!

I will do my best to tag as many participants as possible in the comments.

Additional thanks to Roy for the annual drone team pic (4 years and counting!)

Photo credit Steve Edwards??