School reaches target to help children in Kenya - Africa and Asia Venture

School reaches target to help children in Kenya - Africa and Asia Venture

The latest news from AV Foundation is a fantastic donation from the New School at West Heath in Sevenoaks.

KENT NEWS:

Pupils at a special school in west Kent have reached their target of raising more than £6,000 for projects to help disadvantaged children in rural Kenya.

The students and staff at the New School at West Heath in Sevenoaks have been working with a charity to help youngsters in need in the African country for the last five years. The culmination of their efforts saw a cheque for £3,000 presented to the AV Foundation at the school in Ashgrove Road last week. This money will be used to build a new library at Kiteghe School in remote rural Kenya. 

Another £3,000 had previously been used for school uniforms, books and bursary fees for orphaned children in the poor country.

Princess Diana attended West Heath School, which was then a private girls school, and counted her time there as among the happiest of her life. It was launched as the New School at West Heath, a special school for children who have suffered severe trauma or abuse, in 1998, with the aim of using education to help troubled youngsters rebuild their lives.

The AV Foundation - is a specialist charity which aims to transform lives through supporting educational projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America. It is the primary fundraising channel for those working for Africa & Asia Venture.

Since launching the fundraising effort in 2005, pupils and teachers at West Heath have organised special collections to raise the funds for the new project. School principal Christina Wells said: "We are delighted to support the AV Foundation as there is such a natural link between us. "Staff and students are really committed to the project as, like us, the AV Foundation is helping to change lives through education."

The school picked the AV Foundation as its adopted charity after vice principal Alan Baker heard about the work from his daughter, Charly Baker, who had spent her gap year working in Kenya as a volunteer with Africa & Asia Venture.

Mrs Wells said: "We heard about the urgent need to provide support for orphans in disadvantaged areas of Kenya and immediately wanted to find a way to help. "We know that this latest cheque for £3,000 will make a real difference to the futures of many children at Kiteghe School."

The Kiteghe School library project will be managed by Charles Coldman, from Hever, who was also a volunteer with Africa & Asia Venture and was so moved by his time in Kenya that he returned after graduating and set up African Promise - a project to rebuild five primary schools around Mt Kasigau, employing a team of local builders. The new library at Kiteghe Primary School is the latest of these projects.

David Graham, chairman of the trustees of the AV Foundation, said: "We are hugely grateful to West Heath School for all their support. "The generosity of their staff, students, parents and carers has been fantastic and will make a real difference to the lives of the children at Kiteghe. "We look forward to working closely with West Heath in supporting the community of Kiteghe and in the development of libraries at schools in other parts of Africa and Asia."

For more details on the charities visit www.avfoundation.org and www.africanpromise.org.uk 

Article taken from www.kentnews.co.uk 20 March 2010

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