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Harrogate children raise £800 to help flush poverty down the loo

Thursday, 19 December 2024 11:09

Ashville Prep pupils have been fundraising to improve basic sanitation in developing countries.

Generous Harrogate children will be spreading a little joy and happiness far and wide this Christmas with some very unusual gifts.

A handful of pupils at Ashville Prep School have raised nearly £800 to help improve basic sanitation in developing countries across Africa through a “toilet twinning” initiative.

They have twinned seven of their school toilets with toilets in communities in Pakistan, Uganda, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Tanzania and South Sudan.

Each of these communities will now be supported to build a toilet, either for their community or for a primary school to give many people a safe and secure place to go to the loo for the first time.

The Year 6 children, led by teacher Andy Hart, created a ‘luxury loo’ in school and collected their spare pennies selling items on Vinted, giving their pocket money, making jewellery to sell and doing a sponsored litter pick.

Head of Prep Phil Soutar said the toilet twinning project had "brought much joy in school," including in a special assembly, and the whole school was proud of the difference the Year 6 pupils were making across the world.

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