The school has been privileged to support the work of Grassroots in Tanzania since 2005.
Historically, it’s been a Sixth Form charity with money raised through the Fashion Show and Charity Week for Grassroots’ work with the people of Mbeya in Tanzania. In 2021, it became a whole school charity too.
We have been able to make five student trips to Tanzania, taking Year 12 students to see impact of the money raised, with 10 days seeing the work of the charity and spending time with the people of Mbeya. It is not an exaggeration to say that the trip is life-changing for students and staff alike. A video was put together featuring clips of former students speaking of what the trip meant to them - it is very moving https://vimeo.com/734710688/73361c4523
Why Grassroots? A number of reasons:
- It uses local people and local infrastructure to run autonomous projects
- 100% of money given goes to the children sponsored which can be done for as little as £3.50 a month. This money allows children to be educated, receive uniform, food and free medical care
- As a small, Christian charity with aims that align very well with those of the school, it gives our students and staff a global perspective and encourages them to be outward-looking
- The continuity of support means we are able to see the long-term impact and challenges of sustainable and ethical charity work, whilst allowing Grassroots to plan on the basis of on-going support
- The charity works in more countries than Tanzania so we have opportunities to explore work in other places like India, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Romania, Zambia
- The relationship with the charity has grown over the years and we benefit from their demonstrable commitment to our school and students.
The present and future.
Year 12 students visited Grassroots and supported their work in July 2023.
Fundraising for Grassroots has continued through the Sixth Form Charity events and a non-uniform day.
Grassroots staff continue to contribute to assemblies and the PSHE curriculum of the school and across our Learning Partnership.
The need for sustained, reliable support for the work of Grassroots has never been greater.
It is greatly valued that Bishop Luffa tutor group and individual sponsorship of children and young people in Mbeya is at an all-time high. If you are interested in being part of that, please use the following link to find out more: https://grassroots.org.uk/sponsor/ As the charity’s motto so aptly states, ‘A little goes a long way.’
To find out more about the work of the charity, please visit https://grassroots.org.uk/