This is the only Children's Home in Macedonia which looks after 0-5 year olds and is an essential service which provides for roughly 70 children at the moment.

For the past two summers, I have visited the Children's Home and used the generous donations of my friends, family and my school (Sir Thomas Rich's),to make improvements around the home. Furthermore, we organised several fundraising events to further finance this project, including a very successful coffee morning. These improvements have ranged from buying new cots and cleaning facilities to replacing large sections of the roof that was leaking. In just two years, we have managed to make excellent progress and made a noticeable difference in several rooms around the home. However, the project is far from over - this year I plan to visit the Home with some friends and my Dad to continue this good work.

Above all else, I wish for the children there to receive the best available care and to have their specific needs met. Having spoken to the Director, she has outlined her plan to convert the currently unused upstairs rooms into a specialist area for children with disabilities. The Director also mentioned a Mother and Baby room, which does not yet exist. This would be an excellent addition to the Home. These are both ideas I would be keen to help with.

Furthermore, in previous years, a lot of the improvements we have made have been 'quick-wins' and very simple fixes. These are low cost repairs which immediately improve the living environment for the children, which the Home simply cannot fund. Last year for example, we bought made-to- measure mattresses for play pens, so that the toddlers would stop banging their heads on the bare wood.

I hope that this summer's trip can be just as successful as previous years and that we can continue to make important changes in Macedonia to give the children the best possible chance.

Thank You