Schoolgirls to Help Re-build School
Students at Brantwood School are donating £1,600 to help re-build a school in Pakistan.
Pupils are raising the money for the Kashmir Educational Trust in Sheffield, which is helping rebuild a residential girls’ school that was destroyed in the earthquake in Bagh, Kashmir in 2005.
The pupils will sponsor a room in the new school for £1,597 and name it the Brantwood Girls’ room.
The Lord Mayor of Sheffield, Councillor Jackie Drayton, named the girls’ college as one of her three charities. As her time as Lord Mayor comes to an end, she visited Brantwood to tell them about the charity and how the school is going to be renamed ‘The Sheffield Girls’ College’.
“At present the Kashmir school is still in use. When I visited I saw girls being taught in tents and sitting their exams in the school hall even though it is partly demolished. The girls were sitting on plastic garden chairs leaning on a piece of card to take their test. The hall had no windows but the girls continued to take their exam, showing how much they value their education. Anything we can do to help will make a really big difference,” said Councillor Drayton.
On hearing about the school in Bagh, headteacher Janet Timmins decided they would donate the money upfront and allow the girls to fundraise over the next year.
Mrs Timmins said, “In the first instance Brantwood will be raising money to sponsor a classroom but it is hoped that a longer term relationship can be built with friendships developed between the girls of Brantwood and Sheffield Girls' College, not only by working to raise the funds to sponsor the room but also maybe through letters and even emails in the future.”
Once the school is rebuilt the Lord Mayor hopes that the school will be used for more than just the girls’ education. “There is no public library in Bagh so we are hoping to open one within the school with English books available for the whole community. We also hope to arrange English classes at weekends for adults.”