Pupils from St Margaret’s Academy in Livingston arrived home last month after a two week trip to Malawi to build a classroom in one of the poorest parts of the country.
24 pupils set off on the 20th of June with a little help from local bus operator First Scotland East. First ensured the trip got off to a good start by providing free coach travel to Glasgow Airport. First was one of a number of companies that provided support to the pupils to help fund the trip. In total, the pupils raised more than £22,000.
Talking about their trip Ashleigh Gorman (Aged 17), a pupil at St Margaret’s, said: “The purpose of our visit was to build a classroom and help improve the quality of life in a village in Malawi. Whilst in the village we built a water tower to provide clean water to the community and renovated a health clinic used to treat under fives.
“Conditions in Mangochi are extremely poor and for me it was a life changing experience to be able to make a positive impact on the quality of life for the children. Education for Malawians is so important and having suitable classrooms is essential. However, the country as a whole and in particular in Mangochi are very shot of facilities.
“We had a wonderful time and learned an incredible amount. It was so interesting to see the way people live and work in such a constrictive environment with so little tools to aid them and so rewarding to experience the enthusiasm shown by the villagers towards our project. The local communities were so friendly and couldn’t have made us feel more welcome. I think they really appreciated our efforts and I’m really proud that we contributed to such a worthwhile cause.”
She continued: “Everyone on the trip are so grateful to the school, our friends and family and the local businesses, including First, who all helped make the trip possible.”
Ashleigh’s father (John Gorman) is Operations Director at First Scotland East. John explained that the whole company was keen to help out when they heard about the school trip. He said: “We were pleased to be able to support such a worthwhile initiative within one of our local communities. The trip meant a lot to the pupils – being able to make a difference and help communities that are less fortunate than ourselves is a hugely positive experience.”