A STUDENT will spend a night on the streets later this month to raise money for a Bradford charity.

Connor Drake, 22, from Clayton, is a final year Social Policy student at the University of York and is in the process of writing his dissertation on poverty in Bradford.

He is challenging himself to sleep in a doorway for 12 hours to raise funds for Bradford Nightstop and try and understand a small part of what life is like as a rough sleeper.

This is not the first time he has slept rough, having already done so in March last year when he did it as part of a group in Tang Hall, York.

He said: “It’s potentially quite dangerous, but it’s shocking.

“When I did it before in York I remember being in my sleeping bag with a box around my head, so I was deprived of my senses, and people were just walking past me.

“This time it will be Saturday night in the city centre and there won’t be anyone else with me.

“The atmosphere will be different in that sense, but it will be interesting.

“I will never be able to imagine what it’s really like to be homeless, but this is a smidgen of what it feels like and it has pushed me to do it again.

Bradford Nightstop has been supporting homeless young people in the city since 1993.

They provide accommodation for homeless young people in the homes of vetted and trained volunteers.

This is something Connor is keen to support with his challenging fundraiser.

Joy Rainbow, Bradford Nightstop Team Leader, said: “We would like to thank Connor for taking on this challenge and for highlighting the issue of youth homelessness.

We have been operating for 25 years and continue to support young people in Bradford, Calderdale and Kirklees. The money raised will go an extremely long way to helping young people in the district.”

To sponsor Connor and help him raise money go to: https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/cdsleepsfornightstop