Why runners are raising money for rough sleepers in Northampton this week

A former Northampton reporter has shared why he is running to raise money for rough sleepers this week.

The life expectancy for homeless people is just 45 for men and 43 for women, according to the Office for National Statistics.

A charity run is being held at the Northampton Racecourse on Saturday, May 20 between 8am and 2pm in aid of Project 16:15 - a charity dedicated to providing the town’s rough sleepers with essentials such as sleeping bags, tents, basic sanitisation and hot meals seven days a week.

Former BBC journalist, Craig Lewis, helped to set up the run. Years ago, he produced a documentary on homelessness and - in spending many hours chatting with Northampton’s rough sleepers - learnt of their many plights.

He said: “They are spat at, raped, verbally abused, ignored and dismissed. They are stripped of the dignity they inherently deserve - and the chances in life which so many of us take for granted.”

Craig recalled a woman had been abused all her life, was forced to sleep rough, raped more times than she could remember and turned to prostitution to survive.

The former BBC reporter also described speaking with a man, who still had a cheery welcome for people despite falling on hard times.

The man told Craig how he was begging one day when he spotted his former best friend - the best man at his wedding - walking down the road. Embarrassed to have to acknowledge the homeless man, the so-called ‘friend’ dropped a £5 note in his hand and quickly disappeared.

This was just the tip of the iceberg. Craig has spoken to rough sleepers who have had their tents set on fire, been kicked or abused by people leaving nightclubs and shunned by the authorities they relied on for help.

Craig said: “Sadly, many of the people I spoke to endured horrendous suffering, and even death. These stories are all too common, they were just some people I met in Northampton - there are many more people out there in our town, and so many more in the country beyond.”

Stan Robertson formed Project 16:15 in 2017 to deliver to people what he felt was missing on the streets: dignity, self-respect, value and worth.

He began by walking up and down Abington Street with bacon rolls and an urn of coffee. Now, he has upgraded to a van and runs a ‘Dignity Pantry’ that discreetly delivers food to homes of people, who have been moved off the streets.

On founding Project 16:15, Stan said: “People living on the streets didn’t understand they were worth anything in life, and their lives were focused daily on their situation and their circumstance.

“I wanted to give them a reason to wake up in the morning, and a reason to think they could do more and be more than where they were at.”

Although the charity run is six hours long - looping around the Racecourse’s 1.6 mile parkrun route - participants are not obligated to run any further than they want.

The free event is open to all and it is hoped that runners will either fundraise or donate on the day.

You can sponsor Craig by visiting https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/craig-lewis-project-16-15.