STOP PRESS SUN 24/10/10

The team has successfully completed the run on a lovely sunny Southsea morning on Sunday. Thank you all who have supported our two charities. We welcome further donations.

Thank you for visiting our JustGiving page. Five staff from Bedales and Dunhurst Schools are running 10 miles around Portsmouth in the Great South Run on Sunday 24 October 2010 to raise money for two worthy causes supported by our schools: a rural school in Nicaragua and the new Bedales John Badley Foundation fund for bursaries.

Escuela Vincente Tatavera School, Miraflor, Nicaragua:

Dunhurst, Bedales Junior School, is supporting the Escuela Vincente Talavera School in Miraflor, Nicaragua and has raised funds for new facilities, classroom desks and chairs and is now helping raise funds for a new classroom. The Nicaraguan government does fund schools but only in urban areas with a large catchment  and Miraflor is too remote and rural to get any state aid. This means many of the children earn a low wage, or just work for the family on farms when they leave the primary school.

The school is now planning the building of a new solar panelled classroom. Not only will the primary education opportunities be vastly improved by the new building, in addition, the Nicaraguan government has granted permission for secondary and adult education classes to run at the school on Saturdays. This will have a massive impact on the local community and improve quality of life in many ways. The secondary school status will be a massive help as recent floods have meant it is a two hour journey to the nearest secondary school and only benefits the few who can afford the uniform, books and travel costs.

The secondary school is due to open in early March 2012, reaching out to more than 100 extra pupils. The community is so happy and proud of the school and the prospects for its future with secondary status.

John Badley Foundation:

Bedales is launching the John Badley Foundation to enhance substantially its existing programme of support for bursaries, capital improvements and the sustained work of the Bedales community in helping good causes. It will broaden access to Bedales and Dunhurst through an endowment fund supporting bursaries for talented youngsters. It will create opportunities for children who otherwise could not afford a Bedales education, and who display the strength of character that Badley and Bedalians would admire.

Through nurturing those with innate talent, Foundation bursaries will enhance Bedales’ contribution to the local and national community. The first beneficiaries will start in September 2011 if sufficient funds are raised. To read more please visit the Bedales website.

We will be splitting the money equally between these two worthy causes.

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