The Word on the Street
29 June 2011
On Friday 10 June, around 200 Aviva colleagues in the UK, US and Ireland braved the elements and spent a night on the street for Aviva’s local charity partners. After the successful launch of last year’s ‘sleepout’ in the UK, this year it went international to raise awareness of our global Street to School programme. In total, the ‘sleepouts’ also raised more than £70,000 and helped to boost the profile of our charity partners who work on behalf of children for whom sleeping on the streets is an everyday reality.
Here in the UK, over 100 employees spent the night on streets and raised a fantastic amount of money for our Street to School charity partner, Railway Children; the money is still being counted, and still coming in, but an estimate on the night was that employees raised £22,000 for Railway Children, which Aviva will match. Below are a few of the comments we received from employees across the UK after the event:
Pip Green in London
Rain, rain and more rain... but it didn't deter us.
The garden outside our office was more plastic city than cardboard city - everything from bin bags, tarps and umbrellas were used in a valiant effort to keep dry. Not much sleeping and lots of soggy people.
I have to say it was harder this year than last year. It was cold, miserable and exhausting. It gave me more insight into what it must be like to be a kid on the streets. But I get to go home and change out of my soggy clothes, have a shower and sleep in a proper bed.
The one thing that kept me going as I shivered in my damp sleeping bag was knowing that the money we raised will really make a difference.
Toby Ross in York
We had it easy in York. It stayed dry all night, we had a safe place to sleep, all the cardboard we wanted and a hot snack at 9.30pm. Having said that, it did get bitterly cold before dawn and I've got bruises on my hips from sleeping on the ground.
It gave us a taste of what sleeping rough must be like, but with the edges smoothed off. The scariest thing? The sound of post-York Races 'merry makers' shouting and wailing round the streets right up to about 4am. Just thinking about what that must be like for anyone living rough, let alone kids, was the real eye-opener.
Lucy Cousins in Norwich
In Norwich we were prepared for the worst weather-wise, but apart from a few showers early on, we managed to stay dry. A few late night passers by and noisy buses kept us awake, and the hard car park definitely made me appreciate my bed.
When I imagine being in that situation without 50 other sleepers and a security guard, I can start to understand how terrified kids must get on the streets.
Not to mention exhausted. I spent most of the weekend recovering from just that one night. Street children must be constantly scared and tired, with no way of knowing when it will end or what they’ll have to face each night.
You too can help us make a difference: sign the petition now or make an online donation.
