Wednesday, 23 December 2009

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WOW! Prince William sleeps rough for charity

Royal braves the cold during night on street

Prince William and Seyi Obakin spent a night on the street

Prince William slept rough on the streets of London for one night last week.

The royal wanted to understand the plight of homeless people so he teamed up with charity Centrepoint to camp out close to Blackfriars Bridge on 15 December.

Wills, 27, was joined by the organisation's boss Seyi Obakin, his armed personal protection officer and his private secretary.

'I cannot, after one night, even begin to imagine what it must be like to sleep rough on London's streets night after night,' he says in a statement.

'Centrepoint's work - along with many other organisations - in tackling these fundamental causes is desperately important if we are ever to end homelessness in this country.

‘I hope that by deepening my understanding of the issue, I can help do my bit to help the most vulnerable on our streets.'

William - who is a patron of Centrepoint - went to bed in a sleeping bag on a piece of cardboard in a backstreet alleyway surrounded by bins.

'William asked whether there was anything he could do to help understand what our young people go through,' Seyi tells the Daily Mail.

'I thought on my feet and came up with the thing that I thought he was least likely to do. To my surprise, he said yes.

‘We took as much precaution as possible - finding a relatively secluded spot in an alleyway, shielded partly by a collection of wheelie bins.

'But there was no shielding from the bitter cold, or the hard concrete floor, or the fear of being accosted by drug dealers, pimps or those out to give homeless people a kicking. I have never been happier to welcome the break of dawn!'

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