THE dangers of sleeping rough were experienced first hand in Crewe on a cold November night.

Dominic Rogers, the Police and Crime Commissioner's youth ambassador for Cheshire, spent a night on the streets on Thursday, November 20, to raise awareness of the hardships young people face.

He said: "Running away from home is something that many young people do for a variety of reasons, such as abuse, bullying or because the challenges of daily life become too overwhelming.

"Ideally support networks would be in place to prevent this from happening but for some this is their last resort.

"Sleeping rough gave me an insight into some of the perils that young people who are forced to sleep on the streets face on a daily basis.

"The experience gave me time for reflection and despite the cold and damp conditions; you can only imagine the impact this has on someone’s body and mind.

"I can now go and talk to young people who have faced similar situations with a little more understanding of the difficulties they face once they’ve made the decision to run away."

The event was run by Cheshire East Safeguarding Children’s Board to help raise awareness of Children’s Rights Month.

Dominic was joined by representatives from Cheshire East Council, the Children’s Society, and Supt Luke McDonnell from Cheshire Constabulary.

Supt McDonnell said: "Sleeping rough for the night allowed me to experience to a far lesser degree the very real challenges which some young people face on a daily basis.

"Clearly, homeless people suffer high levels of distress, isolation and uncertainty from their lack of control over their living environment, combined with poverty and often an inadequate level of health and nutrition.

"These living circumstances could impact their behaviour and it is important that the police can do all we can to support these young people and deter them from turning to crime."

Dominic and Luke are planning to meet up to discuss their experience, and the issue of homelessness and how police officers support young people and direct them to appropriate support services.