By Ffion Harris

Simon and Beverley Prosser slept on Coney Beach in Porthcawl to raise money and awareness for the homeless veterans who sleep outside every night.

The Royal British Legion Industries (RBLI) who supports the armed forces, people with disabilities and those who are unemployed created a fundraiser called “The Great Tommy Sleep Out,” where people were encouraged to spend one night outside during March.

The couple, who know both family and friends who are veterans, raised £435 for the fundraiser.

Simon said: “We live just outside of Porthcawl and felt it was the most appropriate place to spend the night as there are a few homeless people in Porthcawl at the moment.

We were quite lucky, we picked a nice night as it wasn’t too cold and we had the fire to give us some extra heat. We slept with a mat underneath us and a sleeping bag.”

He said: “We had a few people join us through the night to ask us what we were doing, they joined us around the fire and we spoke about why it is important to bring awareness to the homeless veterans and how we need to help them.

I think the event will only grow more and more each year as it becomes more known. It is the first year that we have taken part and will definitely be doing it again next year.”

The charity set a target of £250,000 and have currently raised £302,000 with over 11,000 people taking part in The Great Tommy Sleep Out.