Local school thanks community for overwhelming support

Last month, some of our Sixth Formers spent time at Overleigh St Mary’s CE Primary School, offering English language support and running games sessions for refugee children who had recently joined the school.

Having welcomed more than 90 refugees from Afghanistan and Ukraine in a short space of time, the school was in need of more help and Headteacher Emma Drew appealed for donations of time, clothes and toys to help the children and their families settle in.

Overwhelmed by offers of support from the local community, including schools, volunteer organisations, youth groups and churches, Emma thanked the many parents from King’s who have been giving one-to-one English support to the children. 

She said: “Every child is having at least 30 minutes per week with an adult volunteer to read, practise phonics, work on spoken English and play games. We never imagined that we could have achieved this huge goal within just two weeks of our initial request.”

The school has also received donations of clothing, which means that every child has a full set of uniform, and all children have had the opportunity to shop for new home clothes. 

Donations for the school’s toy library were also gratefully received, meaning that the children look forward to taking a toy each week and swapping it for another the following week. 

Emma summed up her gratitude with the help of Dr Arian, an Afghan refugee who is now a doctor in Chester: “Dr Arian has visited the children and their families in school and told us that he remembered every single kindness that was shown to him when he first came to this country.

“Our children may not have even met many of the wonderful people who have made such a difference to them but they will certainly remember the kindness and generosity they have shown.”

The school isn’t currently in need of any further donations or volunteers, but Emma explained that they are aiming to give each child a Christmas gift of a brand new doll or toy. 

“Dolls and cars are by far the most popular toys, even for the older children, and we would very much like to give each child one of their own to keep.”

If students and parents would like to help the school achieve this aim, we will share further information about the best way to donate appropriate items very soon.