TEENAGERS from 10:10 youth group in Devizes slept outside for a night to raise money and awareness of homelessness.

Nine young people aged 13 to 16 made makeshift shelters in St James’s churchyard on Church Walk to sleep in overnight in a challenge called Slum Survivor.

The teens had two hours to build a shelter from tarpaulin and wood and had limited access to food, water and clothing, alongside working for supplies such as torches, batteries and toiletries.

The group raised more than £400 for Christian charity Soul Survivor and the money will go to slums in South Africa for education and sanitation.

Sophie Cutting, 14, said: “It was a great experience and a real eye opener.”

Esther Hargreaves, 16, said: “Slum Survivor was a fun but challenging way to experience a little of what it’s like to live in a slum and it was really interesting to take part.

“It challenged me to do more for people in poverty and to be more grateful for the amazing opportunities God has given me.”

Organiser Kirsty Wilmot, 53, of Queen’s Road, is one of 10:10’s four leaders and has worked as a youth leader in Devizes for more than 25 years. She said: “They really got a sense of what it would be like and realised that people do in fact live like this.

“You can’t quite comprehend how people live until you walk in their shoes.

“We also had two young leaders pretend to be an aid worker and a trafficker. Both spoke to the young people offering them shelter and support. Surprisingly, two thirds of them would have been trafficked as they did not know who to trust.”