The 2024 Kip on the Kop charity event has raised £51,500 to help the homeless in Liverpool.
The fundraising challenge sees people spend a night sleeping on The Kop at Liverpool FC’s Anfield stadium, to help raise awareness of what it is like for the city’s 3000-plus homeless people sleeping on the streets.
The charity set up by the Liverpool Foundation aims to raise money and provide solidarity and empathy for vulnerable people.
Some of those attending the event this year included comedian John Bishop and Liverpool fan channels The Anfield Wrap and Red Men TV.
Another memorable night on the Kop ✊
The @LFCFoundation‘s second Kip on the Kop event took place on Saturday with Reds uniting to help tackle homelessness across the Liverpool City Region ❤️
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) October 14, 2024
Last year’s event raised an impressive £65,000 for the homeless across the city region.
The charity event has also taken place in 2018, 2019 and 2022 when fans slept at Tranmere Rovers’ Prenton Park stadium again raising thousands for the homeless.
Good morning from Anfield.#kiponthekop ✅
Donate here please if you can https://t.co/67NpTFDhgu pic.twitter.com/LbCRe63q2w
— The Anfield Wrap (@TheAnfieldWrap) October 13, 2024
The funds raised go towards supporting LFC Foundation’s Global Works programme which provides sport-based employability sessions and mentoring for young people who have experienced homelessness.
James Jebson from Lytham St Anne’s who is a Managing Director at E6 Creative has helped raise over £1800 for the charity when he attended last weekend’s Kip on the Kop.
Jebson said he was “over the moon,” with the amount he raised. He said: “I committed to doing it with the clothes on my back and my wife’s dry robe which I used as a thin barrier between me and the cold concrete floor.”
Jebson was once homeless himself when he was younger so this charity is something that hits a very personal note with him.
He said: “It saddens me that the homeless stats have increased so dramatically over the last 10 years. Events like this I feel are valuable for not only raising funds, but also awareness of the situation so many people face.”