Students highlight homelessness on Isle of Man

Image caption In the past nine months Kemmyrk has helped more than 350 people on the island

Students from Ballakermeen High School will spend a night sleeping rough to highlight the problem of homelessness in the Isle of Man.

More than 30 people will sleep in school grounds on Friday to raise money for the Manx homeless charity, Kemmyrk.

A soup kitchen will be available in the early evening to prepare the youngsters for a night in the cold.

Head of sixth form Ollie Mitchell said: "In the past nine months Kemmyrk has helped over 350 people on the island."

We wanted to focus on the fact that this issue is, to some degree, a youth issue

Ollie Mitchell, Head of sixth form

"With levels of 'sofa surfing' worryingly high amongst the 16 to 25-year-old age group on the Isle of Man, we wanted to focus on the fact that this issue is, to some degree, a youth issue.

"So we decided that we would put ourselves through, for only one night admittedly, what some of our peers may have to face on a daily basis," Mr Mitchell said.