Solent Students Help Fundraise for Southampton’s Night Light Café

Two third-year Media Production students from Southampton Solent University have helped raise funds and awareness for a local community initiative supporting people facing hardship in the city.

Leah Wyman, 20, and Evan Shepherd, 20, reached out to support the Night Light Café in Southampton, a partnership between City Life Church and homelessness charity Two Saints. The café provides a safe and welcoming space for people to visit on weekday evenings, offering free hot drinks, snacks, and simple meals.

The students initially contacted the organisation to create social media content as part of their final university project, aiming to help promote the café and the important work it does in the local community.

However, their involvement quickly grew beyond the scope of their coursework.

Leah Wyman explained that after visiting the café and seeing its impact first-hand, the pair felt motivated to do more.

“It’s been completely eye-opening doing this, especially going there and seeing how people can be struggling and needing support,” she said.

“With our usual projects, we don’t necessarily do something with so much impact, so it means a lot to do something like this.”

Inspired by their experience, Leah and Evan launched an online fundraiser to support the café. Their original target was £150, but thanks to the reach of their social media campaign and community support, they have now raised over £200.

Evan Shepherd said the response to their campaign had exceeded expectations.

“We wanted to help as much as possible, and we have completely smashed our fundraising target.”

The fundraising comes at an important time for the Night Light Café. According to Paul Woodman, leader of City Life Church, demand for the service has grown significantly.

Since the project began, the number of people using the café has increased by 50 per cent, with an average of 32 people attending each evening.

“It gives people a safe space to go to and get a hot meal,” Mr Woodman said.
“It’s mainly served by volunteers.”

He also praised the students for bringing valuable new skills to the project.

“These are great students, they have added a skill set that we don’t have, to promote what we are already doing.”

The collaboration highlights how creative media skills can be used to make a real difference in local communities. By combining storytelling, social media, and fundraising, the students have helped shine a light on a service that provides vital support for people across Southampton.

For Leah and Evan, the project has been more than just an academic assignment — it has been a chance to use their media skills to support a cause that directly helps people in their city.

 

By Ellen Faulkner