Grand Central Rail supports the homeless with a night sleeping rough in Bradford

Members of the Grand Central Rail team swapped their beds for sleeping bags at Bradford City Football Club this week in aid of a very good cause.

Sean English, Chief Operating Officer at Grand Central along with Will Etherington and Sam Dyson, spent a night in the freezing cold to support youth homelessness charity Centrepoint.

The UK’s leading charity for homeless young people, Centrepoint, has been organising sleep out events across the country for the past 10 years. In Bradford this year, Sean, Will, and Sam joined people from a variety of organisations to raise funds and awareness of youth homelessness.

Grand Central Rail has been supporting the charity now for two years, providing rail travel support, work experience for young adults and sponsorship of events such as Sleepout to give young homeless people a better future. The company raised over £1000 through last years event and aim to better that this year by encouraging its employees to lend their support.

Speaking about his experience of the sleep out, Sean English, said: “Even just spending one night in the bitter November cold was a real eye-opening experience. It really made me think about some of the hardships young homeless people face every day.

“Centrepoint is such a worthwhile charity, making a real difference to people’s lives and it’s vital we raise awareness of the issues young homeless people face. Grand Central is proud to back this amazing cause.”

Centrepoint provides housing and support for around 150 16 – 25 year olds in Bradford, as well as 9,200 nationally.

ENDS

• For more information contact Anna Hodgson at Gardiner Richardson on: annah@gardiner-richardson.com or 07970 729758 / 0191 261 4250
• You can also reach the Gardiner Richardson team on GrandCentral@gardiner-richardson.com 

Notes to Editors:

• Grand Central Railway Company Limited operates West Riding services between Bradford Interchange, Halifax, Brighouse, Mirfield, Wakefield Kirkgate, Pontefract Monkhill, Doncaster and London King’s Cross
• Grand Central Railway Company Limited also operates North East services between Sunderland, Hartlepool, Eaglescliffe, Northallerton, Thirsk, York and London Kings Cross
• Grand Central topped the Autumn 2016 National Rail Passenger Survey with a satisfaction score of 91%. Grand Central was also revealed as Britain’s highest-rated long distance operator in the UK in the 2017 Which? Magazine Train Satisfaction Survey with 72% passenger satisfaction score
• For further information on Grand Central, and to buy tickets with no booking fee, visit www.grandcentralrail.com