The C8 team has another Boycott Your Bed event under its belt, and for me making my debut at the event, it was an amazing and surreal experience!
Founded in 1998, and now in its 28th year, the annual sleepout has raised over £14 million to-date. And it’s money that Action for Children uses so, so wisely to improve the lives of vulnerable children in the UK.
I challenge anyone who has spoken to the brilliant team at AfC – including Natalie, Bex, and Sophie – and have heard first-hand from the young people whose lives they have transformed, not to feel compelled to act. As a father of two, Action for Children’s vision and purpose immediately resonated with me.
This is why I was so pleased that C8 Consulting made Action for Children its official charity of choice in late 2024. Through our ongoing Secret Santa initiative at Christmas, Paula’s running of the Reading 1020 Half Marathon in the Spring, and our bake-sales, everything led up to October 3rd.
Doing it For Real
Notwithstanding my brave attempt to sleep in a bath during the COVID-hit Boycott Your Bed in 2020, this was the first time that I’d get to experience the event for real, after hearing so much about it from my MD, Paula; Boycott Your Bed Founder, Ken Deeks; and numerous members of the Action for Children team.
With Storm Amy making its presence felt at just the wrong time (which led to the unfortunate cancellation of the Boycott Your Bed event in Glasgow – with some participants hot-footing it onto the train back to London to join us), the expected wind and rain forced the 400+ assembled sleepers to move a few yards from a waterlogged Paternoster Square, into the crypt within St. Paul’s Cathedral.
Just before the C8 team – consisting of Paul, Destiny, Ameesha, and myself – made the wet and windy walk from the side of the Thames to St. Paul’s, I gasped when I heard that collectively, Action for Children had raised just under £250,000. This money will do so much for the children and young people that need it most – and their families.
Never before, when passing St. Paul’s famous dome to and from hundreds of meetings over the years, did I ever think I’d one day spend the night in its subterranean surroundings. That’s certainly a re-tellable story! Throwing our roll mats and sleeping bags down besides the final resting places of the likes of Sir Christopher Wren, Sir Alexander Fleming, and Viscount Nelson, was a little surreal to say the least.
I felt lucky for a number of reasons. Firstly, who can say they’ve slept in the crypt at St. Paul’s Cathedral? Well, as it turns out, it is around 400. Secondly, I had a roof over my head, it was warm, and I hot food in my belly. So many children and young people don’t have something as basic as this, and have to face that reality every night. With that in mind, I would have slept wherever I was told to – inside or out.
An Easy Choice to Do as Much as Possible
After a maximum two hours of sleep and dozing, it’s an amazing feeling to wake-up surrounded by like-minded individuals who have volunteered to give up their beds for the evening.
Whilst many of my fellow sleepers were strangers, it was great to catch the eye of some of them and smile back, as we simultaneously stuffed sleeping bags back into wherever they would go. We all realised that we’d been part of something bigger to raise money for those who need it most.
It was wonderful to be part of Boycott Your Bed 2025, and to feel the commitment and dedication from everyone. The spirit and camaraderie is hard to replicate in everyday life.
The generosity and support shown by the amazing friends, families, partners and clients that have supported C8 Consulting, has been nothing short of outstanding. Thanks to your sponsorship, we have so far raised over £3,000 and counting.
And it doesn’t stop there; our JustGiving page remains open for the rest of the year, so if you didn’t get around to sponsoring us, feel free to click the link and donate now: Paula Elliott is fundraising for Action for Children.
Here’s to Boycott Your Bed 2026!