Pocklington's school links with Malawi

A POCKLINGTON Primary school is building links with an orphan day care centre in rural Malawi.
Pupils from St Mary and St Joseph's RC School have been exchanging letters with children at the centre.

The project started in 2005 when Colin Stonelake, husband of one of the school's teachers, Lydia Stonelake, visited Malawi as trustee of a charity which works with local churches in the country.

His wife suggested he took letters from her pupils with him when he visited the day centre.

Many of the children replied in English and the letters were given to the school.

Mr Stonelake visited Ntonda again in January this year and took more responses from Pocklington pupils with him.

The handover was filmed so children could see the people they had written to. The Ntonda children wrote back again and this week the letters were distributed in school.

Mr Stonelake is going back to the country next month and will take replies with him.

A school spokesperson said: "For the children of Pocklington this connection has been both interesting and informative. They have learned about the hardships of Malawi and the all too frequent experience of children losing their parents to Aids, malaria and other prevalent illnesses.

"They have also seen the basic conditions in which these children live through the video footage which Colin took in January.

"For the children of Ntonda it has shown them that children from the other side of the world are interested in them and want to share aspects of their lives in the UK with them."