Tent and cardboard box city? Read why this is happening in Milton Keynes

The Big Sleepout is organised by the city’s homeless help charity UnityMK to marks 15 years of Winter Night Shelter service.

Members of the community, businesses and organisations are invited to spend a night outside, sleeping as a homeless person would, on Friday May 15.

The event aims to raise £8,000, which could provide a full winter season of meals for people staying at UnityMK’s Winter Night Shelter, while also raising awareness of the challenges experienced by those facing homelessness.

The UnityMK Winter Night Shelter service operates between November and April each year and has 15 beds available each night. Last winter, 1,890 lifesaving beds and 4,318 hot meals were provided.

Currently, according to Shelter, over 2,700 people are homeless in Milton Keynes, placing the city in the 20 local authorities outside of London with the highest rates of homelessness.

The Big Sleepout will take place in the ground of Snellshall company Cranswick Convenience Foods, which has been a partner of UnityMK since 2021. This will be the fifth year the business has hosted the event, providing participants with a safe and controlled location with access to toilet facilities, cardboard to sleep on, hot drinks, first aid provision throughout the night and a ‘grab and go’ breakfast for participants in the morning.

Sam Pearl, Site Director at Cranswick in Milton Keynes, said: “We’d love to see as many people and organisations as possible take part in what is an incredibly eye-opening experience, while also raising vital funds for this much-needed service.

Over the past 14 years, UnityMK estimates it has provided nearly 26,500 winter night shelter beds for people who would otherwise have been sleeping on the streets of MK. The need for this service continues, with the charity meeting around 10 new people experiencing homelessness every single week and regularly seeing 50 guests signing in for support at its welfare centre at Unity Park Station each day.

Kane (name changed for privacy), approached UnityMK when he found himself homeless. He said: “I can’t say enough good things about UnityMK. They have been amazing and I honestly don’t know what would of happened to me without them. The welfare team have been supportive and caring while maintaining professionalism and the volunteers genuinely care about your wellbeing.

"I am truly grateful and appreciative for everything they have done for me and once I am in a more stable situation, I intend to volunteer myself. It is not hyperbolic to say UnityMK saved my life.”

Ria House from UnityMK, said: “The Big Sleepout is about more than just one night. It’s a chance for people to come together, raise vital funds, and gain a small insight into some of the challenges faced by those experiencing rough sleeping in our city.

For more information and to sign up to take part in the sleepout, visit here.