AROUND 100 SCHOOL STUDENTS TO SPEND FREEZING NIGHT OUTSIDE
Up to 100 high school students are set to brave freezing temperatures to highlight the plight of the homeless and raise money for local and international charities – spending a whole December night under the stars on their school’s playing field.
The students at North Walsham High School are mounting their ‘Freeze Over’ on Friday 9th December – with temperatures set to drop close to freezing, according to weather forecasters.
The students will be raising money for four charities: Cromer Foodbank, which provides emergency food supplies for people in crisis; The Benjamin Foundation, which provides a range of services and support to people across the county; The Children’s Acute Transport Service, which takes the skills of a paediatric intensive care unit ‘on the road’ to the bedside of critically ill children throughout East Anglia; and Save the Children.
“The idea for the Freeze Over came from a group of students who are working to achieve their Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, and it has really caught the imagination,” explained Daniel Mullen, head of geography at the school, who is co-ordinating the sleep-out.
“The students wanted to get a sense of what it feels like to be out in the cold, and by choosing December to undertake this challenge, they are certainly going to get that.”
Year 9 student Holly Edens, one of those who dreamed up the idea, said, “We were learning in Geography about different people’s situations, and how bad it could be to be homeless – and we wanted to do something to help.
“Lots of other students were well up for joining in, so we now have around 100 who are going to spend the night on the school field.”
Fellow student Amelia Hennigan added, “We are all excited about it, although I don’t think we will be getting much sleep. I have only ever camped in my back garden before, so this will be a completely new experience.”
Twenty-eight staff from the school have volunteered to be on hand to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the students, who will spend the night on the school’s playing field outside the Atrium building.
As well as raising awareness of the plight of homeless people, the students are being sponsored, and hope to raise around £2,500 to be split between the four charities.