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LATEST STORIES

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Changemaking beauty with The Body Shop at Home

21/1/2023

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Our first inspirational conference of 2023 kickstarted the new year with our incredible partners at The Body Shop at Home. More than 1,000 people gathered in Telford, and thousands more watched online to celebrate this incredible change-making business, which has been a force for good for decades ever since the late Dame Anita Roddick founded the business. 

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November Fundraising Highlights from Children on the Edge

13/12/2022

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The countdown to Christmas is on, but our fantastic supporters kicked off the festive season in style with some brilliant events held in November, including two Christmas markets and a 90’s reunion party. Read on to find out more … 

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A Chichester charity that makes a big difference

30/11/2022

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Children on the Edge is a Chichester based charity that works to support some of the worlds' most marginalised children, living in some of the toughest situations.

The charity was co-founded in 1990 by Bishop Luffa graduate and Chichester resident, Rachel Bentley and the late Dame Anita Roddick. 

After witnessing the appalling conditions in Romanian orphanages first hand, Dame Anita Roddick mobilised her company, The Body Shop International, based in Littlehampton, to help.

The Body Shop, sent supplies and a small group of volunteers, to help three orphanages in the remote village of Halaucesti. Rachel Bentley, a 23-year-old law graduate from Chichester, was one of these volunteers, and together, they sparked the response that created Children on the Edge, which exists to this day to support some of the most marginalised children around the world. 
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Anita Roddick in Romania in 1990
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Anita and Rachel in Indonesia
By 1992, Rachel Bentley and Anita Roddick started the charity, Children on the Edge in an official capacity, together with The Body Shop. By this time, they had developed considerable expertise in working with institutionalised children in Eastern Europe, working through local partners, and coordinating all their work from offices in Chichester.
Over 30 years later, Children on the Edge has worked in more than 18 countries, and currently support over 20,000 children in Bangladesh, India, Lebanon, Myanmar and Uganda. In 2022, in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, we began supporting Ukrainian refugees in Romania and Moldova.

We are staffed by a small, dedicated team from our offices in The Victoria, Chichester, and work together with local partners based on the ground in the countries we work in. ​
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Chichester Cathedral
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The charity is grateful for the incredible generosity and long term support of The Body Shop and other local Chichester businesses, including Montezuma's, Store Property, Wiley and many others over the years, who have made an incredible difference and made much of our work possible. 

Children on the Edge is also supported by a faithful community of supporters in West Sussex and beyond. Local schools, churches, individuals and organisations as well as consultants from The Body Shop At Home, have raised thousands of pounds to support our work with marginalised children around the world. 

Our historic flagship fundraising event, the Chichester Half Marathon was brilliantly supported by the Chichester community during the years that we were involved (up to 2019), and the event raised tens of thousands of pounds for our vital work around the world. The event is now run by Everyone Active.
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The Children on the Edge Chichester Half Marathon Event was a popular local event


​What do Children on the Edge do?

We work to create conditions in which every marginalised child can flourish and thrive no matter where they live and irrespective of the challenging circumstances they face.

We place children at the heart of everything we do by working hand-in-hand with local ​communities
​to restore hope, dignity, and justice; and to actively involve everyone in creating transformation.

​By working alongside communities, we design award winning programs tailored to their specific needs and circumstances using our 30 years of experience.

This has enabled us to transform the lives of children facing some of the most challenging circumstances, by co-creating protective, nurturing environments in which they can safely live, play, learn, and grow.
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Cluster group learning in Uganda supports over 2000 of the youngest refugees to learn and play
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Learning centres in India offer Dalit children the chance to learn in a safe space
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As Children on the Edge grows, we continue to apply what Anita had taught us: to trust your gut and always listen to people on the ground, who know the culture and understand the needs of their own people best. ​

​Rachel Bentley, who was awarded an OBE in 2022, still leads Children on the Edge with the same spark that she and Anita began it with, and The Body Shop has been a faithful pillar of support ever since.
Today, we continue to adapt and respond, always working on the “edge” for a world where every child can thrive, regardless of their gender, ethnicity, caste or geography.

The 'edge' in 1990 was the institutionalisation of children in Romania, and today, the 'edge' takes us to Uganda, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Lebanon, where refugee children are stripped of their rights to education, and denied their chances of a brighter future. Children on the Edge provide education for over 
17,000 refugee children who have fled persecution, conflict or violence.

​Our 
award-winning programmes use innovative ways to enable access to education, working alongside local communities to find the best possible solutions. ​We train refugee teachers so that children can learn in their own dialect, from familiar, trusted adults that understand them and our classrooms are fun and colourful environments where children are safe and can learn to express themselves.

'The Edge' also takes us to India, where Dalit children are denied their rights and are unable to access education, and to the slums of Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, where working children face huge barriers to education. 


Education breaks ongoing cycles of displacement and poverty, and the classroom creates a place where hope can begin, and children can start to flourish. ​


​How can you support Children on the Edge?

​Our wonderful community play a vital role in transforming the lives of marginalised children around the world. Your support really does make a difference. If you'd like to keep up to date with all our latest news and find out how you can support our work, please join our mailing list. 

1. Become a Regular Donor 
​

Regular, reliable income ensures that we can continue to support marginalised children living on the edge, as we have been doing for over 30 years. 
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2. Join Our Latest Virtual Challenge

​Whether it be walking, yoga or a fitness challenge and no matter where you are, you can get involved with our virtual challenges. 
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Find out more >>
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3. Fundraise in your Workplace

Perfect for team-building, strengthening relationships and making a difference, why not fundraise at work? 
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4. Become a Corporate Partner

With transforming benefits for your business, your staff and your customers, and the chance to be at the heart of bringing hope to children around the world, there are so many reasons to start a partnership with us. 

Contact us to have a chat >> 
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5. Hold your own Event

We love hearing and supporting your ideas, there are unlimited options! Have a think, be creative, either on your own, or as part of a club, school or faith group.

Find out more >>
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6. Fundraise at School 

Support us with a one-off fundraising event or activity, get involved for a term or become a long-term partner. Or invite us in for an assembly if you're thinking about supporting Children on the Edge at school.

​Find out more >>

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​What Makes Us Different?

Being a small charity based in Chichester gives us some great advantages in how we work and what impact we have.....
We can work under the radar: Being small often enables us to work in areas where larger organisations cannot, due to their size and the limitations and bureaucracy that come with that. 

We’re agile: Our size gives us the flexibility to meet the needs of the people we work with quickly and effectively. For example, if our partners are faced with a sudden flood, increased air raids or arrests, then we can respond immediately, building support or adapting the programme accordingly to continue to meet the needs of the children we work with. 

We’re streamlined: We don’t rely on large and costly international staff offices in the countries we work in. Instead, we focus on building strong relationships with our local partners who have a thorough understanding of the situation on the ground and a depth of relationships with their communities. Our office in Chichester, West Sussex, has 13 staff members and we also employ a regional manager in Asia. 

We’re focused: Having a small number of projects means we can focus on delivering work of the highest quality. We fine tune our projects and ensure that each child is valued as an individual. 
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We keep you connected: Our size means that our donors and supporters can have a real connection and ownership with the work they are investing in. Your money doesn’t go into a huge machine, but to a small (but perfectly formed!) group of projects from which you are updated on regularly. This means you can see the changes that you are making possible. ​

In the kind of work we do of supporting children in some of the toughest situations across the world there are so many benefits to being a small organisation like us. You can rest assured that your money is always being spent wisely and where the need is greatest.

On average, for every pound spent by Children on the Edge, 86p goes towards our work with marginalised children around the world. This money  helps to support local communities in creating safe, child friendly spaces, where children are able to realise their rights and look to a better future.

The rest covers our fundraising costs to bring in a sustainable, steady stream of income to keep our projects running smoothly, along with all our UK office overheads.
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October Fundraising Highlights from Children on the Edge

10/11/2022

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Fundraising Highlights
Our amazing supporters were making the miles count in October. Walking and running to help make a difference for the 20,000 children we support. Read on to find out how our supporters have conquered marathons, embarked on pilgrimage walks and completed hundreds of steps over the past month. 

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Pumpkingate: the spooky mystery of the missing charity pumpkin

31/10/2022

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Pumpkingate: the spooky mystery of the missing charity pumpkin. Primrose and the Pumpkin
When Suzi Russell and her daughter Primrose grew a huge ‘Cinderella’ pumpkin on their farm near Lowestoft, they thought it would be a fantastic way to raise money and support Children on the Edge, they certainly didn’t expect that the pumpkin would become a local talking point and feature in the news. 

Suzi, who is a Body Shop at Home Consultant, together with 5-year-old Primrose, grew the enormous pumpkin and auctioned it off to the highest bidder to raise funds to support Children on the Edge.

This could have been the end of a lovely story but this pumpkin tale doesn’t end here… 

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Children on the Edge are delighted to give a little wonder with The Body Shop this festive season, funding over 195,000 days of education for refugee children.

19/10/2022

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The Children on the Edge team at The Body Shop in Chichester
Children on the Edge is delighted to be partnering with The Body Shop this festive season. Every time you buy a gift from The Body Shop, (in-store, online or from your local Body Shop at Home consultants) you’ll be creating brighter futures for refugee children around the globe. This Christmas The Body Shop will be donating to Children on the Edge from the sale of every pre-filled gift, hoping to raise up to £100,000. This support will help to fund over 195,000 days of education for refugee children across Uganda, Bangladesh and Lebanon.

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Supporting Children on the Edge - Why Should I Become a Regular Giver?

14/10/2022

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Children on the Edge works hand-in-hand with local communities around the world to create safe spaces, where children are able to realise their rights. We rely entirely on donations from our amazing community of supporters, who currently fund vital work for over 20,000 marginalised children, and we couldn’t do it without them! 

We are so grateful to receive one-off donations from individuals, from fundraising activities and events, as well as fantastic contributions from trusts, foundations and corporate partners.  In addition... an excellent way that you can support us, that really does pack a punch, is a regular, monthly donation.

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Children on the Edge takes part in The Body Shop Westfields store’s grand reopening!

11/10/2022

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Fundraising Officer Charlotte and staff at the new Body Shop Store
On Wednesday 28th September, we were invited to a slightly different kind of event - the big reopening of The Body Shop Westfield’s Stratford City store. Fundraising Officer Charlotte Callin was one of the first people to see the newly revamped store in the shopping centre and was to have a sneak peak of all of the new areas including the fantastic refill stations and the pamper area, where customers are able to chat to staff and sample some of the brilliant products. She was especially impressed when the staff told her that all of the new fixtures and fittings in the store are made from upcycled, recycled and sustainable materials.

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Fishbourne Primary School show their support for refugees with an incredible year of fundraising.

11/10/2022

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An assembly at Fishbourne primary School
Fishbourne Primary School’s philosophy is “There is only one you in this great big world … make it a better place”, and students from the school have certainly been doing just that, raising over £1,250 for Children on the Edge and Sanctuary in Chichester. Their amazing fundraising will help refugee children both overseas and locally in the Chichester area.  

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Edie’s Garage Sale Trail Success!

10/10/2022

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Edie's garage sale banner
Eight-year-old Edie Faulker from Angmering was inspired to support Children on the Edge after hearing about children being forced to leave their homes in Ukraine  after the Russian invasion. Edie wanted to raise money to help because she “wants all children to be safe and happy”. Not only did Edie raise an incredible amount of money to support Children on the Edge, she also helped to spread the word about the work of the charity amongst her friends and family. 

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​Children on the Edge, 5 The Victoria, 25 St Pancras, Chichester,  West Sussex, PO19 7LT, UK | 01243 538530 | communications@childrenontheedge.org 
  • DONATE
    • The Big Give 2022
  • COUNTRIES
    • Country Overview
    • BANGLADESH >
      • Kutupalong
      • Cox's Bazar & Doharazi
    • INDIA
    • LEBANON
    • MYANMAR
    • UGANDA >
      • Jinja
      • Kyaka II
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  • ABOUT US
    • WHO WE ARE
    • Contact Us
    • 2022 Highlights
    • Annual Report
    • Awards
    • Meet the team
    • Our Story
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  • OUR WORK
    • OUR WORK Overview
    • Working on 'the Edge'
    • Safe Spaces
    • Child Rights
    • Refugee Education
    • Early Childhood Development
    • Cluster Learning In Uganda
    • Supporting Slum Communities
    • Tackling Caste Discrimination
    • Ending Child Sacrifice
  • GET INVOLVED
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