Last year I slept outside for one night to raise money for Centre Point. This year, I've convinced my sister Yvonne to do the same. So on the 23rd February we are both doing a Sleep Out to raise money and awareness for the brilliant work that Centre Point are doing. What does it entail? Well, we spend the night sleeping rough in the city like many people do every night of their lives, albeit with some protection around us and prepared enough to withstand the cold. It's a great experience to remind us how lucky we are and to put some support into a good cause.

Clearly homelessness is not okay. Homelessness also influences so many other facets including suicide, mental health, risk of violence, drug abuse and generally devaluing the chances of living a good and healthy life and drastically shortening your life span. This is even starker when you consider young people who are homeless.

A few sobering reminders on homelessness include:

1. The average age of death for people experiencing homelessness is 45 for men and 43 for women.

2. People sleeping on the street are almost 17 times more likely to be victims of violence, and homeless people are over nine times more likely to take their own life than the general population​

3. Core homelessness, including rough sleeping and living in unsuitable temporary accommodations, has been rising in England. By the end of 2021, 227,000 households across Britain were experiencing core homelessness, with projections suggesting this number could rise to 300,000 households by 2023

So if you can spare a fiver, anything really, it's going to a great cause. Help us to support Centre Point in its mission to end youth homelessness by 2037.