West Lothian sleep out in support of £1 million recovery centre as campaign passes £150,000
Mass sleep out ahead of Edinburgh man’s six month sleeping rough challenge
More than 40 people slept outside this weekend in solidarity with a recovering drug addict preparing to spend six months sleeping rough to raise £1 million for a “vital” new recovery facility.
The sleepout took place on Saturday night with supporters, residents and former beneficiaries, at Hope House in West Lothian, the residential recovery programme run by charity Steps To Hope.
The charity’s founder Richie Roncero is preparing to spend 26 weeks sleeping rough across 26 UK cities – including London, Liverpool, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Aberdeen, Belfast, Derry and Dundee – from October 17 in a bid to fund a new five-bedroom recovery facility, and cover its operating costs for a year.
The campaign reached a major milestone this week when, with months until the challenge begins, it passed £150,000 after an impassioned plea from Richie.
The Edinburgh man, who spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on cocaine before entering recovery, said the expansion is urgently needed because demand for the charity’s 10-bed programme now far outweighs capacity.
“To have more than 30 people sleeping outside in support of this means everything,” he said.
“People came together because they believe in what we are trying to build and they know how vital it is. There are people sleeping outside every night who do not have an end date and do not have a safe place to go.
“We are carrying out around 50 assessments a month, but we only have 10 beds. We cannot meet the demand.”
Steps To Hope opened Hope House, a 10-bed residential recovery programme in West Lothian, in August 2024. The facility was funded following Richie’s previous eight-week rough sleeping challenge, which raised £240,000.
The charity operates a 12-step-based abstinence programme and accepts both self-referrals and agency referrals from across the UK. The proposed new five-bedroom facility would increase its residential capacity by 50 per cent.
Richie said: “It breaks my heart that people are sitting on our waiting list when they are ready for recovery.
“The work we do is life or death for many people. We have seen people come through Hope House and rebuild their lives, but there are so many more people asking for help than we can currently support.”
The 42-year-old founded Steps To Hope in 2018, initially handing out hats and gloves to people sleeping rough with his daughter, before the charity grew into a wider homelessness and recovery service.
While Richie experienced periods of homelessness, sometimes sleeping on park benches during addiction, Richie said the upcoming challenge will be the hardest thing he has ever done.
“I have slept rough before, both in addiction and during fundraising challenges, but this will be the most difficult thing I have ever done. I will also be doing it clean and sober, with no substance to numb the cold, fear or isolation,” he said.
“I will arrive in each city with no money, one set of clothes, a sleeping bag, a toothbrush and my phone. My first job will be to find an empty cup and start begging.
“There is nothing enjoyable about it, but if doing this helps us create more recovery beds then I have to give it everything.”