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Phenomenal Fundraising from Bryanston School

26/2/2018

 
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GEt your school involved
Head girl Lotte Thomas and Head boy Harry Goodwin took on the responsibility of organising Bryanston School’s annual fundraising weekend 2018 and invited Children on the Edge to be a part of the event. After reading about Children on the Edge in the Times Christmas Appeal, they got in touch.
 
They set a staggering target of raising £10,000 over the weekend, which began with a school assembly on the Friday afternoon. Lotte and Harry presented to their class mates and the rest of the school about the important work Children on the Edge do in supporting vulnerable and forgotten children. With everyone on the same page regarding the cause, the school was ready to start the weekend.
 
Assassins, Bacon Butties, Baklava and a sit-down dinner
 
The fundraising fun began on Friday night with ‘The Assassins Game’ which Harry said, as well as being fun, ensured that everyone got involved in donating. On Sunday morning, parents were invited to join in, but not before all pupils were invited for a special treat of bacon butties. Activities included an international stall selling sweet treats and ornaments from international student’s home countries. The pupils also held a photo exhibition which showcased their talent. Visitors could pay to vote for the photographer they felt deserved the title of ‘Best photographer’.
 
Over 70 parents then came together for a delicious lunch, waited on by volunteer students. Eloise Armstrong (Fundraising Manager at Children on the Edge) introduced parents to the charity and explained where the money raised would go.
 
Eloise said; “It was fantastic to be invited along to the lunch and to be able to say a few words of thanks. The parents were incredibly receptive and interested in the work of Children on the Edge and after the lunch were eager to show their support”.
 
Who let the dogs out?
 
After lunch, many parents made a dash to their cars to collect their dogs who were excitedly waiting to take part of the first Bryanston School Dog show. Costing £10 to enter, categories ranged from ‘Most fabulous fur’ to ‘Dog that looks most like owner’. Big and small pooches took part as the sun shone brightly and the dogs paraded their owners round the school fountain.
 
Harry said how “Having lots of happy, fluffy dogs at school also brought the student body out in full, and it snowballed into a huge community occasion”.
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Strutting your stuff
 
One of the biggest challenges the students undertook was organising a themed fashion show which spanned almost 100 years, starting with the roaring 1920s and ending with the latest fashion trends of 2018.

100 donated outfits were sold after the event, which was presented by Head Boy Harry, whose excellent fashion knowledge had the crowd cheering and clapping. Prefect Lucy Ferguson said “Most importantly everyone had lots of fun, with a really vibrant event”.
 
Tea, coffee and scones were then served, accompanied by a beautiful acoustic jazz and followed by two auctions which raised over £3,000.
 
When asked why they chose to fundraise for Children on the Edge, Lotte said; “We thought it particularly significant that Children on the Edge work with groups already formed in areas, in order to get a local insight of the region in question, but also to identify where help is needed most and prioritise this.

​We also wanted to support a charity that was small enough that our funds could make a significant difference, and used as efficiently as possible. After finding out more about the minimal core costs and maximum charitable costs, we knew that Children on the Edge was a brilliant charity to support
”
 
Lucy spoke on behalf of all prefects and volunteers involved when she praised the incredible work involved in the weekend, saying “I believe that the sheer hard work of all the prefects, especially our amazing Head Girl and Head Boy, Lotte and Harry, meant that the weekend was organised effectively and we were all able to enjoy it”.
 
Despite a fundraising target of £10,000, it now looks like the weekend will be raising somewhere in the total of £16,000. A major portion of which will be going specifically to our work with displaced Kachin children in the mountain camps of Myanmar.

Eloise said “On behalf of Children on the Edge we are so incredibly grateful to the students, teachers and parents of all those who took part to make the fundraising weekend possible.”

If you think your school could get involved in fundraising for Children on the Edge, just get in touch with Eloise or Abs by e-mailing fundraising@childrenontheedge.org. or calling the office on 01243 538530. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Loco Child Rights Club clean up the community

19/2/2018

 
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Children from the Child Rights Club we support in Loco slum, Uganda have recently organised a clean up day in their area, inspiring the adults to join in and attracting other children to the club.

30 children from the Club, based in the Ugandan Railways Primary School and supported by Children on the Edge Africa, came up with the idea when they created their Club’s work plan at the start of the year.

After they decided they wanted to have a day to spruce the area, Children on the Edge provided some equipment, and the Loco Child Protection Team also bought shovels along, with a few of the team members helping out on the day. The area was swept and tidied, with rubbish being gathered and burnt.

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Ashwin Ndlovu, who is currently out in Uganda supporting the development of the team’s Monitoring and Evaluation said ‘They were so organised and enthusiastic. They all put on their child rights T-shirts, and the girl that was leading it was brilliant. She was very confident, and went around to people’s houses, talking to adults about children’s rights and what the Child Rights Club does”.

One member of the Child Rights Club lives in a neighbouring community, but he came to Loco to help his team members clean their community and share information with parents about child rights. He said “I don’t live here, but I came to help as children have the right to live in a clean environment”. A few more children followed along, asking how they could join as they were inspired by what the other children were sharing.

After the cleaning was done, they went back to the Primary School for some porridge and a workshop led by the children themselves. They sat outside and talked about how to stay safe from abuse, chatting about situations they have been through and what they find difficult.

They talked freely with our social worker Babra, and the patron of the Child Rights Club, saying that they find it harder to talk to their teachers. One girl said ‘My Stepmother gives me all the clothes and I do the laundry by myself. She doesn’t ask her own children to do this, and I have to wait until the other children finish their meal each day and eat the leftovers”.

​The children were glad to be able to talk, and also shared some positive comments about the project. They talked about how much they like to play in the new Loco playground outside the Early Childhood Development Centre, when all they used to do was go to Jinja town to pick up scrap.


Watch this space to see what new ideas the Child Rights Club comes up with this year, and find out more about the wider project here.
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Rohingya refugee crisis  - How we have helped so far

11/2/2018

 
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Since a brutal campaign of violence from the Myanmar military forced over 650,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, Children on the Edge have been responding to the crisis. Already working in the Kutupalong camp for seven years, we were uniquely placed to offer humanitarian support.

Thanks to the generous support of many donors, we have:
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A situation assessment in November revealed that many of the wells implemented by other agencies had been dug too shallow, or built near latrines causing contamination.

All our tube wells have been well placed and dug to over 600ft.
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Hassan had been in the camp for two months when we dug the new well in his section. He said “There are four other tube wells in our section of the camp, but this is the only one which gives clean water.

​Before we used to just use the dirty water or walk about 1 km to another deep well in the registered part of the camp
”.

Rama his daughter (above) adds “My arms would get very tired carrying the water from the registered camp. I’m very happy we now have clean water close to where we live”.
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Many latrines we saw in November had been placed either by water sources, creating contamination, or on steep inclines, leaving them at high risk of being washed away once the rainy season comes. They were mostly full or broken, rendering them useless for residents of the camp.

The latrines installed by Children on the Edge are dug to a proper depth and are being maintained by community committees who have been consulted throughout the process.

Naeem has been in the camp for three months. He describes how “Before people would come and build a well or a latrine and then they leave. They don’t talk to us. We don’t know who they are. They just hang up their sign and leave when it is finished. But these people talk to us. We know who they are. When the other toilets and wells are broken, there is nothing we can do.Some of the wells only worked for one week. It’s a big waste of money”.
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Alongside rice provisions from the World Food Program, our parcels included food items that were higher in nutrition, including lentils, sugar, salt and oil. We also included Oral Rehydration Sachets (ORS).

Aadila, age 30 said of the parcels “I am careful with how much I cook every day. We each eat one handful of rice a day with a small portion of the lentils. I can feed my whole family this way for 2 weeks.”

Food provision is now being well co-ordinated by the larger agencies, with decent levels of nutrition, in adequate amounts.
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By doubling up our established classrooms in Kutupalong, we were able to provide safe spaces for up to 2,250 newly arrived Rohingya children each day.

The children talk of skipping, games, singing and how kind their teachers are. They are focused on the songs they have learned, who is winning the games, and what they have drawn, rather than what they have been through.

​Sofaya is seven years old, she says “I like when my teacher plays games with us. She is fun to play with. She makes me feel better when I am sad. I like to skip rope. I learned to jump rope at the centre. It’s a very fun way to spend time. My teacher even tries to jump rope too sometimes!”

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The teachers here have been trained over the years how to support children with trauma, and how to make the space child friendly, welcoming and fun.

Staff don’t address trauma directly, but create a safe environment where children can forget where they are and what they have been through.

​Ayasha (left) has been teaching for a few years and says “As the teacher we need to show them a smile every day. This will make the centre feel like a happy place for them. And then they want to come back again the next day”.

We have also provided 5250 Solar lights  - without a source of light for the evening many families have trouble with cooking and other tasks, and travel around the camp is dangerous for women at night. The lighting units are strong, waterproof and portable.

Going forward our main concern is that these children have consistent support. We will have a strong focus on providing education in a safe environment for newly arrived Rohingya refugee children. This will take the form of:

- 150 new Classrooms for Rohingya refugee children in the Kutupalong camp.

- Continuing support for nine Community Learning Centres in Cox’s Bazar, which already cater for a large number of Rohingya children. We anticipate these may host many more newly arrived Rohingya refugee children as they move on from the camps further in to Bangladesh.​
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Together these will provide education for 8,400 children a year through 168 classrooms. This work will draw on our experience, providing colourful and innovative schools which stand out for their excellence. If you would like to find out more about education in the camps this year, don't hesitate to get in touch, or lend your support by clicking the buttons below. 
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Children are at risk in Wandago slum, Uganda

6/2/2018

 
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Children from Wandago have been telling us about the challenges they face in their area. Read about what needs to change, and how you can help. 
Wandago is a slum community outside Jinja, next to the Kakira sugarcane plantation. After being asked by residents for support in changing their community, Children on the Edge Africa have conducted a needs assessment in the area.

This consisted of interviewing 69 households, running workshops and activities with local children, and interviewing other community members and leaders. The children used mapping, interviews and tours to identify dangerous and safe areas within their community, and discussed the problems they face in their day to day lives.

Well know for its production of crude alcohol (Waragi), Wandago has been host to a number of hand built, back garden breweries, where residents buy molasses from the plantation and distil it. Trucks arrive daily to ship the alcohol to wider areas of Uganda and across the borders.

These breweries pose a number of risks for young children, who suffer severe burns from hot drums, which are also prone to explosion; killing or maiming those nearby. Children breathe in the fumes, and two have reportedly died after falling into the cooling pits.

Older children are more at risk from the work itself, often found fetching firewood, carrying jerry cans and loading and unloading the trucks. This work has decreased recently, as Kakira has turned its focus to the production of ethanol, leaving a limited supply of molasses for local brewers. This has left many households without an income, in an area that is already struggling for what they need to survive. The majority of households reported being vulnerable to problems of low income (or no income), food security, nutrition, health, sanitation and shelter.
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Children also listed drug addiction and abusive treatment from inebriated adults as a problem, as well as beatings, neglect and hunger. Children here are also very vulnerable to child labour, with few going to school, and many households relying on their work for an income.

​A local police officer from Wandago said “
Children don’t go to school as they are employed in the factory or sugar gardens. They work at the local bars from age 10-15, and young children are often caught selling drugs at these bars or by the side of the road”.

When asked what they wanted to see in their communities in the future, children responded that they would like to have more schools and sources of water. They wanted their parents to stop forcing them to do certain activities and want to remove the sugar cane field from near the schools as abductions of children have taken place here.

Our Grants Officer, Sarah Ndlovu said “Identifying the most vulnerable families at this stage and, in the longer term, engaging them with safer and more sustainable livelihoods could help to transform the mindset of the community and begin to create a safer environment for children”.

Children on the Edge Africa are building relationships in Wandago, and will be working with the existing Child Protection Committee here, sharing methods from their ‘Child Protection Team model’, which has seen previous success in similar slum communities. It costs between £20-40 for a small business loan, which can create a positive income source.

Consider making a donation, or better still, sign up as one of our regular donors to provide consistent support.
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The Body Shop At Home do it again!

5/2/2018

 
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​The wonderful The Body Shop At Home team and consultants have gone above and beyond with their fundraising for Children on the Edge each year, and 2017 was no different.

Smashing a fundraising target of £85,000, they raised a staggering £113,688 through their Body Shop parties, regular monthly donations, fashion shows, ball nights and by taking on a huge range of runs and cycles. 
 
On Saturday 3rd February Ben, Esther, Abigail and our amazing volunteers Helen and Jane, travelled from Chichester to Telford for their Spring Conference, armed with 1,700 goody bags generously donated by The Body Shop, raffle tickets and t-shirts. The team always look forward to the energy and generosity shown in the rapid fundraising for vulnerable children at this event.
 
The result was an incredible £21,099 raised in one day. This is a phenomenal record amount for a February conference, and we were blown away. 
 
Our Executive Director, Ben shared news from Uganda and described why we are beginning work in a new community called Wandago. We also celebrated consultants who rose to the challenge of raising more than £100 at their parties in the run up to Christmas.
 
Ben says “Our fundraising targets are always ambitious and once again you all smashed it! Your ongoing passion and support for Children on the Edge is helping us to create safer environments for more and more vulnerable children in Uganda each year”.
 
The Body Shop and Children on the Edge have worked together since Dame Anita Roddick founded the charity in 1990. Driven by her passion for sustainable and ethical products, Dame Anita hoped to provide a similar approach to charity work. After witnessing the atrocities befalling children in Romania following the war, she created Children on the Edge to create hope, life, colour and fun for some of the world’s most forgotten children.
 
Thank you to all those who are supporting us to continue this work. If you are a consultant from The Body Shop at Home and you'd like to find out how to get more involved, just e-mail tbsah@childrenontheedge.org.
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Ambassadors' Quiz night and supper raises over £3,000

1/2/2018

 
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2018 began with friends and celebrations for the Children on the Edge team as our lovely Ambassadors gathered for a fun filled Quiz night.  Over 120 people came together at Fittleworth Village Hall for 12 rounds of 2017 trivia and a delicious fish and chip supper.

Walter Jones (a long-standing member of the Children on the Edge volunteer team) and his appropriately named ‘Walter’s Winners’ team took the final prize at the end of night.

Whilst Walter and his team were gracious champions, it was the event and the people that made it such a memorable evening for Walter:

‘‘It was a super evening full of people who are committed to supporting Children on the Edge. People tonight were really keen to lend their support. They like the fact that Children on the Edge are a small, local charity, rather than a big bureaucracy. They are getting the job done well, helping children in serious need, and they keep donors in touch with the difference they are making”.

A glass was raised to everyone’s incredible generosity, support and hard work over 2017. The evening offered a moment to reflect on how much had been achieved by all involved with Children on the Edge in the last year, and their continuing work to restore the ingredients of a full and happy childhood to so many forgotten children.

The final total from the evening was an incredible £3,007.80.

​If you would like to be involved in our next fundraising event, or maybe you would like to organise one, then please get in touch!
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​Children on the Edge, 5 The Victoria, 25 St Pancras, Chichester,  West Sussex, PO19 7LT, UK.
  • DONATE
    • Ramadan
  • WHO WE ARE
    • A Child Rights Approach
    • Meet the team
    • Contact Us
    • Media
  • WHAT WE DO
    • Bangladesh: Education for Rohingya refugee children
    • India: Education for 'untouchable' Dalit children
    • Uganda: Transforming slum communities
    • Uganda: Early Years Education for Congolese refugee children
    • Kachin State Myanmar: Support for displaced children
    • Bangladesh: Community Schools for slum dwelling children
    • Lebanon: Education for Syrian refugee children
    • India-Nepal border: Education for children in brothel communities
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