St. Andrews Church in Leicester are appealing for volunteers to take part in their ‘Christmas sleep in for the homeless’.
The church will be opening their hall to 10 different homeless people for a month, beginning on the 10 December.
Volunteers will be needed every night to settle the guests into their home for the night and in the morning to make and serve breakfast.
Reverend Canon Karen Rooms said: “We’re desperate for volunteers to help us with this project, at this time of the year it’s so important to give what we can to those less fortunate than ourselves.
“We did this a couple of years back and since I’ve moved to the parish I decided it would be a good idea to bring it back and create a community spirit again.”
The church, on Jarrom Street is opening its church hall doors to 10 homeless people every night for a month during the festive season after it was revealed that there are 4,400 homeless people in the East Midlands
The project will be the second time that the church and its congregation have decided to take part in this. Four years ago, the parish decided to try this for the first time.
Ben Matthews was one of the homeless who attended the first night, said :”Being welcomed by people and getting help even if it is for only one night, is fantastic for us. It’s nice to know that people actually care about us.”
Volunteers are desperately needed for the nights to run smoothly and to make the people feel welcome in the hall, as if it were their own home.
Action Homeless is the charity working alongside the church to ensure that homeless people are aware that the church is available for them to sleep in.
Vice Chairman of the Leicester based charity, Alex Payton said: “It’s fantastic that the church has decided to do this. It’s really important that we get the volunteers we need.”
At least 10 volunteers will be needed each day, but more are welcome to join. The church is also asking for people to sleep in the hall with their guests overnight.
Alex added: “I encourage everyone to take a few hours out of their time to give back to people who will be incredibly grateful.”
For more information, contact Rev. Karen Rooms on 0116 255 3823.
