Students and staff at Selby College have donated funds raised from their Platinum Jubilee celebrations to Sleepsafe Selby.

More than £610 was raised for the charity, which provides temporary accommodation for the homeless or anyone who is facing a night on the street.

At Sleepsafe Selby, our mission goes beyond providing people with a place to stay. We aim to support people in securing tenancies and claiming benefits so that they have somewhere long-term to call home. We also give them a head start by helping to source furniture and provide food parcels and clothing. It’s incredibly heart-warming to have the backing of our local College in helping to raise funds for our crucial work. Contributions such as this go a long way in helping small charities like ours support the people who need it most.

The College’s fundraising activities included a bake-off themed competition, which saw students and staff put forward their best bakes. The treats were then judged by Hospitality and Catering Assessor Liz Brighton and Christine Ross, who is the owner of local cake company Christine’s Cakes, before being sold.

Receptionist Melanie Bloxham was crowned the winner of the staff cake category, which was a large Victorian Sponge cake with fresh fruit, meringue, flowers, flags and a Platinum Jubilee topper.

Wendy Miller, HR Administrator, was named winner of the staff traybake category, with her gluten-free mini Victoria Sponge cakes which were decorated with Union Jack flags.

Hospitality and Catering student Samanta Mezane won the student cake category with her homemade Kinder Cheesecake.

Contributions were made by local and national business to the College’s raffle, which included a spa package at the Parsonage Hotel in Escrick, a hand-crafted stained glass suncatcher by SH Stained Glass, tickets to Doncaster Racecourse, a gamers package including a headset, mouse mat and keyboard by WEBFROG, and more.

Vouchers from Amazon, Domino’s, M&Co, Mister C’s in Selby, Nandos, Tesco, York Designer Outlet and Xplore, were also generously donated as prizes.

After months of planning, we were delighted with the success of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations. We had lots of engagement from learners and colleagues across the College in the activities, particularly the bake-off competition. There was a real buzz across campus and it was lovely to see so many smiling faces on the day. The generosity of the businesses who donated prizes to our tombola and raffle was outstanding, which ultimately helped us raise an incredible amount of money for a deserving cause.

Hospitality and Catering students also made cream teas for attendees, with the proceeds going to the charity alongside the raffle, tombola and cake sale.

The Motorist in Sherburn got involved in the activities and brought a vintage 1959 Mini to the College’s campus, in which students and staff could sit in and learn more about.

Students and staff also enjoyed a volleyball and table tennis competition, face painting, tree-planting, a ‘Spot the Queen’ treasure hunt and a royal-themed photobooth, which even featured a throne and red carpet.