HUNDREDS are expected to brave the cold in Glasgow tonight in a bid to raise funds for young homeless people.

The city's Blythswood Square Gardens will play host to chilly fundraisers set to camp out under the stars to experience a glimpse into life on the streets.

Action for Children's Byte Night, now in its 11th year, will kick off at 7.30pm with each sleeper expected to have raised a minimum of £500 to take part in the event.

The charity's new CEO Julie Bentley was on hand at the City Park headquarters on Alexandra Parade to help a team of volunteers set up for the night ahead.

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She told the Evening Times: "Obviously, one night sleeping outside is not a true representation of life as a homeless person but what we know from past events is the discomfort of being on the ground, especially if it's raining and it's wet, gives a tiny glimmer into what people are going through.

"My advice to everyone going out tonight is put your thermals on, layer and I would just want to say thank you to everyone."

Julie packs a van for the Glasgow sleepout

Julie will travel to sites in Manchester and Cardiff throughout the night, having already visited Belfast early this morning, to keep the sleepers and volunteers motivated.

Previous events in Glasgow and Edinburgh have raised around £800,000 for the charity and staff are keen to break the record tonight.

The money goes towards helping the Action for Children stop children and young people ending up out their homes.

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Julie added: "It's an absolutely crucial event. When people talk about homelessness, they immediately think about people sleeping on the street but we work with families at risking of breaking down - it could be for a myriad of reasons such as poverty or violence - to prevent that.

"These children are at risk. You don't see them sleeping on the streets, they are likely to end up in inappropriate temporary accommodation.

"All the work we do is trying to avoid that situation."

To find out more about Action for Children's services, visit here or to donate to Byte Night text BYTE18 and amount you wish to donate to 70070.