YMCA Norfolk launches Christmas appeal 

Home4ChristmasLaunch500YMCA Norfolk has launched a new Home for Christmas campaign which aims to help ensure that no young person in Norfolk has to sleep on the street, in cars or on friends’ floors this Christmas.


Launching the campaign, YMCA Norfolk chief executive, Tim Sweeting, said: “There are children and young people out there who are sleeping on the streets, in cars, or on a series of friends’ floors until they run out of options.

“They have no safe place from which to build a life for themselves. So we are encouraging the local community to join us in making sure no child or young person experiences the instability and fear of having no place to call home.

“As the winter weather draws in we become all the more aware of children, young people and families who are without a home. Last year we would have needed an additional 200 homes to house all the people who applied to us,” said Tim. “So we are redoubling our efforts to provide a safe warm home through our ‘Home for Christmas?’ campaign.”

  • £10 would provide a Christmas gift for a young person who might otherwise go without.
  • £15 would pay for a bed for the night on Christmas Eve.
  • £75 would provide a Christmas food hamper for a single parent family
  • £250 would pay for Christmas dinner for all the young people in one of our hostels.
  • £1,250 would pay for all the food we use in our hostels over Christmas and New Year.
  • £3,500 would provide all the young people we are supporting with a Christmas gift.

The campaign will include posters, billboards and advertising on Future Radio.

To respond to the appeal, simply text YMCA15 and either £1, £2, £3, £4, £5 or £10 to 70070 to make your donation.

During the past year, YMCA Norfolk has housed 623 young people and families and helped more than 80 young people into work

Read about how one young YMCA Norfolk resident is looking forward to Christmas for the first time

Read more about the Home For Christmas appeal and how you can help

Pictured above is the Home For Christmas appeal poster at the launch event at the Open venue in Norwich.