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 The 5th Chichester Half Marathon is open for sign ups and with two new races on offer, it promises to be the best one yet. In conjunction with Chichester District Council, Children on the Edge have launched the 2016 Chi Half. This stunning ‘multi-terrain’ half marathon, has been described as “an iconic South Coast race, a must for any serious runner” and this year introduces some great new features making it accessible to an even wider group of runners. For this year’s event, planned for 9th October 2016, the Chi Half team are expecting a huge response from those returning and new runners alike. The 2015 event hosted nearly 1,000 runners but this year they have been able to increase the entry limit to 1500 runners. The main event will be the standard Half Marathon, a beautiful route which takes in the major City Centre sights and landmarks as well as spectacular rural scenery in the surrounding Lavant and Goodwood countryside. The terrain is a good mixture of road, paths, cycle tracks and cross country. In addition to this, the team are introducing two new features, the Ten Mile Race and a Team Relay Race: The Team Relay Race is a great way to involve anyone new to running as the Race comprises three legs of varying distances (3.6 miles – 5.9 miles). It's also great for bringing club mates, friends and families into the event who feel much more comfortable with shorter distance but will still experience the enjoyment of the half marathon event. If you can do a 5K, you can be part of a relay team! The Ten Mile Race is a fantastic warm-up for anyone in training for longer races or who isn’t quite ready for challenge of the Trundle! You’ll enjoy all the benefits of running through the City and climbing two thirds of the Trundle, with all the splendid views of the Solent, without the last gruelling leg of that hill to contend with! Whether you’re going for the full Half Marathon, a Relay team or Ten Miler, registration is open, so get in there an reserve your place at the start line. Sign up for a Chi Half Race Find out more  Ian Birrell’s piece on Syrian refugee camps in last Monday’s Independent, stated that ‘Refugees may have escaped hell, but that does not mean we force them into purgatory’. The article shows how many huge refugee camps, far from being humane sanctuaries, are actually dismal outposts, rife with abuse and exploitation, penning in families for convenience and preventing them from finding work. In Lebanon the government has taken a different approach. Rather than creating vast refugee camps, Syrian refugees tend to be scattered into many smaller informal settlements. This is mainly as a result of the problems caused by large Palestinian refugee camps in the past. 500,000 Palestinian refugees have now lived in Lebanon for over 60 years in 12 official refugee camps across Lebanon where security is largely self-regulated and it is perceived as a location and source of militancy and instability.* To avoid this happening again the Lebanese Government made the decision not to allow official refugee camps within its borders. Despite the huge numbers Syrian refugees in Lebanon, very few live in camps. The refugee population is instead dispersed across 1,700 locations, including 1,400 informal tented settlements on relatively marginal pieces of land. Sadly though, there is still room here for exploitation and abuse. ‘The way things often work in the informal tented settlements’, explains project manager Nuna Matar, “is that a leader of a camp allows people to rent a space in his camp provided that he is the ultimate ruler. He tells people where to work, he takes children 9-10 years old to work so he can get a percentage on their day wage, he sometimes abuses young girls, (sometimes sexually) and also sends them to the field all day so he gets part of the profit of their labour. If a family does not have this work force and no girls to send to the field, the camp leader often evicts them from the camp”. Many Syrian refugees have become accustomed to living under this kind of dictatorship, however after the recent eviction imposed by the Lebanese army, more insecurity rose in these families as they had nowhere to go. As a response to this crisis, our partners rented a 11,000m2 piece of land and created a safe environment where people can settle. As a first step they put gravel half way throughout the camp and added electricity poles. Within weeks, 27 families had moved in and a new school was built so that the children could continue their studies. At the beginning of February gravel was spread through the remaining part of the camp to make room for more families. With careful planning (see diagram below) as each tent is pitched they are ensuring there is adequate space between them to prevent over crowding and unsanitary conditions. Nuna describes how “The atmosphere in the camp is amazing. People are enjoying a kind of freedom they have never known. We have set rules and regulations in the camp that ensure fair treatments for everyone”. Children are beginning to get back into their routine at school and a driver has been hired to bring in refugee children living outside the camp. “We are going to invest in the lives of these children and teach them values about their self-worth and really build the whole community” says Nuna. The need in this area is continually growing. Children on the Edge are supporting the running of a number of schools in refugee camps throughout the Bekaa Valley, and now beginning to contribute to the maintenance of this new camp, providing a vital safe environment for these vulnerable families. Find out more about the work here, and please consider donating to the project * INEE (2014) Lebanon Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies, New York: Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE)   Easter is coming and we have a great family activity which can slot in with your plans as and when you like.
In partnership with Montezuma’s Chocolates, we have arranged a special Easter Treasure Trail in the centre of Chichester that families can go on anytime that suits throughout the school Easter Holidays. Following 10 years of working with Montezuma's organising popular family Easter events in Priory Park, last year we launched the first city-centre Easter trail, attracting hundreds of entries. This year's trail has a brand new clue sheet made specifically with families in mind, featuring child friendly questions, parent tips and, of course, a Montezuma’s chocolate prize for every child at the end. The trail will be running from 25th March - 10th April. Just visit the Montezuma’s Chichester Store in East Street to pick up your treasure hunt clues and enter! Entry is £4 per child with all proceeds going our work. Children will have the chance to learn a little more about our projects as they go around the trail. For any further information just e-mail office@childrenontheedge.org or call us on 01243 538530.  International Women’s Day is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of their countries and communities. This year’s theme considers how to accelerate the 2030 Agenda, building momentum for the effective implementation of the new Sustainable Development Goals. The theme highlights the following key gender equality targets of the 2030 Agenda, so here they are, with some examples of how we are currently working towards them in our projects:
 Every year some of our wonderful ambassadors organise the Maxse Walk to raise money for our international projects. Registrations for this year's walk are now open and there are spaces ready to be filled!
The walk consists of five stunning routes across East and West Sussex between the 6th -10th April, with spectacular views guaranteed! Some of the scenic Sussex locations include Beachy Head, Devils Dyke, Petworth Park, Rother Valley and the South Downs. To fully enjoy the views and refuel, there is the option to have a delicious pub or picnic lunch at some of the walks. The rough area and dates of each walk are as follows: Wednesday April 6th - Beachy Head Thursday April 7th - Devil's Dyke Friday April 8th - Rother Valley and Petworth Park Saturday April 9th - A trundle around Goodwood Sunday April 10th - The North Escarpment of the Downs form above and below. It’s completely up to you how much walking you would like to take part in. If you are a walking enthusiast, you can complete all five routes, but you can just as easily opt for a day's walking or simply join the group for a morning. All the money raised will be supporting our projects and the work of The Institute of Cancer Research. We hope all the walkers have a fantastic time and that the sun will be shining! To find out further information and book your place, please download a registration form and contact Sally Marien. |
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