CARING students have made a difference to the lives of hundreds of people across the North East and Africa after raising more than £60,000 for three charities.
Pupils from The King's Academy, Coulby Newham, presented cheques of £1,800 each to representatives of the school’s three adopted causes following a year of fundraising.
The money raised will help to support the work of The Butterwick Children’s Hospice, Stockton, The Great North East Air Ambulance and The Uhuru Ministries, Kenya.
Former King's Academy principal Chris Drew, who attended the presentation, said: “Since The King’s Academy opened 12 years ago our staff and students have done a remarkable job in helping to support our three chosen charities.
“Our total of £60,000 is an incredible amount to have raised during that time and a tremendous legacy by the staff, students and parents of The King's Academy.
“Whether as individuals, as tutor groups or even as entire year groups, our fundraising is always a whole school effort and I hope it will continue to make a difference to those people in real need.”
King’s Academy geography teacher Samantha Wills, who accepted the cheque on behalf of The Uhuru Ministries, Kenya, said that the money would help to provide shelter, food, books and clothing to children orphaned or abandoned due to civil war in the country.
“This is an amazing amount which will go a long way to helping children in desperate need living in a really poor area of Kenya,” she said.
Community fundraiser for The Butterwick Children’s Hospice, Stockton, Tracy Bowstead, thanked the academy for its continued support, which has so far raised over £20,000 for the children’s cancer charity.
“Donations like this are wonderful and show that the staff and students here at The King's really do think about others before themselves,” she said.
Public liaison officer for The Great North East Air Ambulance Janet Hume added: “The Great North East Air Ambulance costs £4.5 million a year to run and receives no government or lottery funding.
“We are completely reliant on donations like this to ensure that we can continue the invaluable work that we do helping save lives across the region.”