Hat's off to pupils helping Malawi

KIND-HEARTED pupils at Waseley Hills High School in Rubery have donated 1,600 knitted baby hats to a premature baby unit in Africa.

The garments were transported to a hospital in Malawi last month after a three-month appeal which was supported by students, their families and friends, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and the local community.

Pupils were inspired after hearing details of a visit to the area by Barnt Green couple Alexis and Gordon Cowie who spent three weeks in August at the Queen Elizabeth Children’s Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi.

During the visit, they helped a project supported by Birmingham Children’s Hospital (BCH) to send nurses and medical items to the poverty-stricken area and saw how much the hospital relied on donations of vital equipment.

"When we returned to the UK, I wanted to start a project that the students in school could get involved with and that would make a big difference to the hospital.

"I decided that a simple project of knitting hats would help support the large number of premature babies that arrive daily and increase a babies survival chances," Alexis added.

And students warmed to the task and learned how to knit during lunchtimes to ensure premature babies on Kangaroo Ward could be given such a vital lifeline.

The school has continued its association with the hospital by sponsoring a local teacher at the hospital, doubling her salary from £5 to £10 a month.

"In an era when you only hear bad things about teenagers, it was a breath of fresh air to see so many of them getting involved and giving so much of their time to help," Alexis added.