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Leeds fundraisers gather at stadium to spend a night under the stars for local charities

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Homelessness charity, St. George's Crypt, teamed up with two other local charities, St. Gemma's Hospice, and the Leeds Rhinos Foundation, for the eighth year of the Big Sleep event.

This year, around 180 people gathered at Headingley Stadium to spend a night under the stars.

Gareth Cook, Head of Community at the Leeds Rhinos Foundation, said: "We take a night out of comfort to raise money for the most vulnerable people in the city, supporting a lot of the projects that we all deliver across Leeds."

Saffron Carroll

This image depicts a homeless man crouching on the ground outside McDonald's. He's looking away from the camera into the distance. He's wearing a black wooly hat, and has a blue backpack by his feet
Government figures from 2023 found that the number of rough sleepers in Leeds increased by 48% over the year

Chris Fields, Chief Executive of St. George's Crypt said: "It's one night in a year, one night in a year we ask people to do it. Imagine doing that for six months before you get into a service that can arrest that behaviour or give you an opportunity to get a bed for the night."

He added: "You've got to do it to know what it's like."

Saffron Carroll

A man stood in the stands of Headingley Stadium rolling out a sleeping mat as he sets up his bed for the night
Volunteers, corporate teams, charity staff, and Leeds Rhinos players sacrificed the comfort of their homes to spend a night on the terraces.

This year's event raised £19.2k which was split equally between the three charities. With winter on the way, donations are vital for these organisations.

Katie Bell, Corporate Fundraising Manager at St. Gemma's Hospice, said: "We've been here for 45 years and we've been providing that care for so long now and we just hope that it can continue in the years to come but we can't do that without events like this."