Eastbourne student spends Christmas holidays supporting homeless community

Anoushka Beardshaw, a pupil in the independent school’s lower fifth, collected money, food, sleeping bags and toiletries for Crisis at Christmas.

Crisis, the UK’s national homelessness charity, shared Anoushka’s donations with two East Sussex charities.

Some of the donations went to Warming Up the Homeless, which provides meals, hot drinks and clean clothes for the street community throughout Eastbourne and Hastings. Anoushka’s donation was the single biggest the charity had ever received, she said.

Other donations went to The Clock Tower Sanctuary, a drop-in centre for young homeless people in Brighton and Hove.

Anoushka, who hopes to continue her fund-raising efforts, said: “People gave so generously that I had three trolley loads of items to give to the charities.

“They were quite surprised when I kept on coming back with more! I was overwhelmed by the support I received from the whole school. It really felt like everyone wanted to do their bit and, when I visited the charities, I could really see how our donations had made a real difference.

“I am proud to have done something to make a few people’s lives just a little bit better.”