Cheselbourne’s village school motto of ‘inspiring a lifetime love of learning’ had true meaning this month, when a STEM-themed week of activities created a wide range of experiences ranging from a Science Dome to a Robotics workshop, and many visits and webinars from ‘proper’ scientists.
The passion of all of the staff members and helpers was truly showcased, and the children were engaged in so many ways. These opportunities support the children not only to develop their knowledge, but also skills that will be transferred across the curriculum into many other subjects. During one task, the children had to design a contraption that could hold an egg. The contraption was dropped from over 7 feet in height and the aim was to see if the egg would stay intact … Great fun!
There’s endless enjoyment from the bottom of a wine glass, says expert wine merchant Sadie Wilkins – but make sure you keep an open mind.
One of the things I love about wine is the fact that each glass becomes an experience. There are so many variables that are tightrope walking in any given bottle that’s it’s hard not to feel excited or like there’s an opportunity to feel something new from the bottom of each glass. So, I suppose the question I am posing is: can we ever truly suss out a single grape variety? There are so many factors at play, from climate and terroir to winemaking processes and blending; the easy (and, enthralling) answer is, simply, no. However, does this mean that we never know where we stand? To an extent, yes – but we can of course always fall back on tradition, long-standing terroir conditions and appellations to protect the typicity of a given region, right? Though, even in these contexts, we can’t account for climate change and the individual personality of a winemaker, which influences their unique style – they are human after all.
Do you take your Malbec French or Argentinian? Let’s take Malbec for example; a grape which has risen to heady heights over the last 20 years, it is often a grape that customers feel confident in claiming as a variety they ‘know and love’. Interestingly though, we can often bet that 75% of the time when they say ‘I like Malbec’ that they mean they like Argentine Malbec, as the recent popularity is thanks to the South American revival. Malbec from this region, most notably Mendoza, is incredibly different to a glass of Malbec (or ‘Cot’) from France – the country of origin. If it’s made in Argentina, you are going to have a warmer climate and grapes that ripen at a faster rate. Therefore, you can expect a very fruit-forward plummy style alongside a fuller body, which quite often has more in-your-face oak ageing than its French counterpart – which is still plummy in flavour, but has a drier, more subtle freshly-picked-from-the-hedgerow style. The same goes for many other wine grapes: a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc for example offers a greener palate, with vibrant vine tomatoes, gooseberries and cut grass notes in comparison to a leaner, more mineral French take from the Loire.
Handy benchmarks But what I’ve done here is rely on my previous experiences to create a ‘typical grape experience’, an expectation, in my mind. But wine is much more than that. We source wines at Vineyards that are both typical and unusual examples of a grape variety – but that’s where having a benchmark standard comes in handy. It gives you a point of comparison. The actual beauty of wine is being taken on a journey from a single sip – whether that be to a place of surprise or somewhere within your comfort zone. So, is it ever worth pigeonholing a grape when there’s so much at play in each given vineyard? For us, an open mind is the best approach and is the thing that makes a career in wine so fun!
A unique heritage project is reviving historic connections between North Dorset and Newfoundland – and has already led to a couple of a remarkable discoveries, says BV columnist Roger Guttridge.
A humble pair of mittens that probably started life in Sturminster Newton has turned up in a private museum in a remote part of Newfoundland – and is causing ripples of excitement on both sides of the Atlantic. The mittens are the world’s only known surviving garments made of swanskin, which was uniquely manufactured in the Blackmore Vale from the 16th to the 19th centuries.
The discovery of these rather dull-looking mittens is causing international excitement – they are the world’s only known surviving garments made of swanskin, which was uniquely manufactured in the Blackmore Vale in the 1500- 1800s. The cloth for these may well have been made in Sturminster Newton.
Dorset’s fishing mitts They came to light as a direct result of a heritage project called the Swanskin Seafarers of Sturminster Newton, which is bringing together historians, museums, teachers and students in both Sturminster and Twillingate, Newfoundland. As word of the project spread around Newfoundland’s remote north coast, Peter Porter came forward to say he had the mittens in his museum on Change Islands. Peter has a ledger recording the sale of the mittens in 1899 but they may be decades older – and the material would have been made in the Blackmore Vale. Former teacher Jocelyn Bath told the BV from Twillingate: ‘My father remembers his dad having a pair. “They were favoured by the fishermen because they were warm but could also be removed quickly when the need arose while fishing or sealing.”
Twillingate and Sturminster Jocelyn has also uncovered some family documents dating back to 1816 that included orders for swanskin and references to Sturminster Newton. An estimated 92% of the ancestors of people in Twillingate (pop 2,121) and neighbouring Change Islands (pop 208!) and Fogo Island (pop 2,244) came from Dorset – and many of those from North Dorset.
The swanskin mittens are in a private museum in Newfoundland
As I discovered when I visited Twillingate in 1997, a huge proportion of residents have traditional Dorset surnames, and speak with strong elements of the Dorset accent and dialect. The story of North Dorset’s close connection with Newfoundland dates back to the 16th century, when hundreds of ships sailed annually from West Country ports to exploit the North Atlantic’s rich stocks of codfish.
No swans were harmed in the making of these mittens … In those days the Blackmore Vale was predominantly sheep- farming country and much of the wool was turned into a thick flannel-type cloth called swanskin. Swanskin, whose only connection with swans was its colour, was ideal for clothing fishermen working in the cold and wet North Atlantic waters, and Newfoundland became the main market for a fast-growing production line. The earliest reference to swanskin is dated 1578, when Sturminster clothier James Yonge (Young) applied for tax relief on cloth sold to ‘mariners going beyond the seas’. In 1611, a fulling mill was built alongside Sturminster’s grain mill. Here water- powered fulling stocks hammered the fabric until it was sufficiently felted to make it waterproof. By 1793, no fewer than 1,200 Sturminster people were employed in swanskin production, an industry which also extended to Shaftesbury, Stalbridge and the villages. Between 4,000 and 5,000 35-yard pieces were produced each year and carted to Poole, whose ships dominated the Newfoundland trade in the 18th and 19th centuries. A trade directory reported of Sturminster: ‘The principle manufactory carried on here is for white baize or swanskin, in which the poor, who are very numerous, are chiefly employed.’ The Sturminster dialect poet Robert Young recalled that the racks on which the cloth was fixed covered one or two fields. ‘Many a time I have watched the weavers’ swift shuttles passing between the tightened threads,’ he wrote. The fulling mill was demolished about 1800, when the swanskin trade was beginning to decline in the face of competition from the industrialising North and Midlands. By 1812, the number of people employed had dropped to 700 or 800. As this trend continued, some of the Sturminster cloth merchants filled the economic vacuum by switching to cod fishing. This in turn led to a dramatic increase in the migration of Dorset people to Twillingate and other developing fishing communities.
The only other known picture of a swanskin garment dates from 1712 and shows a swanskin-clad fisherman (far right) at a Newfoundland fishing station
High school Zoom The Swanskin Seafarers project, supported by a £14,000 grant from the Association of Independent Museums (AIM) and the National Lottery Heritage Fund, will include research led by the Sturminster Newton Heritage Trust, arts projects – including a film – led by arts company Emerald Ant and hands-on research by students on both sides of the Atlantic. As the former Old World Connection columnist for Newfoundland’s Downhomer Magazine, I was honoured to kick off the project by talking to 100 students at Sturminster High School and, by video link, to students at JM Olds Collegiate (JMOC) in Twillingate. Students from the two schools have since met each other via Zoom and more exchanges are planned. The Twillingate youngsters are especially intrigued by the discovery that most of their ancestors came from a small area of southern England and are plunging into family history. JMOC principal Stephen Earle said his school community felt privileged to be involved in a project which had already exceeded expectations. ‘Our students are already making some amazing connections between Twillingate and Sturminster Newton, particularly around their ancestry,’ he said. ‘This project is allowing us to easily expand into some of our deep learning objectives and we look forward to continuing this partnership.’
tudents at JMOC, Twillingate, learn about their community’s historic connections from Roger Guttridge (on the big screen). From the JMOC Facebook page “Mrs. Bath’s grade 9 social studies class take in a chat from UK historian Roger Guttridge as part of our history linkage project between us and Sturminster Newton High School. More exciting stuff to come in the following weeks!”
The Twillingate students are planning a school trip to Peter Porter’s museum on Change Islands, which is also home to a Newfoundland pony refuge. The hardy ponies, whose numbers have dwindled in recent decades, are descended from the New Forest, Dartmoor, Exmoor and Connemara ponies that went out on the ships as working animals. Jocelyn Bath added: ‘We’ve had so much community interest in this project on our end. The response has been fantastic.’ At Sturminster High School, one of the topics that has caught students’ imagination is the apprenticeship of young orphans to the Newfoundland trade. In 1621, Sturminster clothier William Williams left money in his will to apprentice two boys a year – from Sturminster, Shaftesbury and Blandford in rotation – ‘to the sea service’. Each apprentice received ‘two jackets, two pair of breeches, a greatcoat, three shirts, two pair of trousers, one hat, two pair of shoes, two pair of stockings, two handkerchiefs, knives, combs, caps, bed, pillows and a large blanket’. The William Williams charity, which also aided ‘clothiers, serge-makers, linen weavers and felt-makers’, continues to fund students 400 years later (see BV March issue here) Sturminster High School students are furthering their studies with visits to the mill, museum and the Dorset History Centre. ‘This project has enabled staff and students to weave the “golden thread” of local history through the existing curriculum, creating exciting opportunities for further study,’ said the school’s head of humanities, Sandra Mitchell.
We find ourselves in such troubling times of late. What is – for want of a better word – fascinating to me are the different opinions and levels of compassion for the Ukrainian people shown on social media. I am astounded once again at our country and their willingness to help. However there are just some that just don’t get it. My six year old has shown more compassion than a lot of adults I have seen. I have attached a picture of her with the goods she purchased because I am proud. Proud to have raised a strong and thoughtful young lady. Entirely independently, she put her dolls house up for auction to raise funds to buy toys for the Ukrainian refugee children. As it happened she received donations instead, and raised £150 to buy toys and toiletries with. This is after both she and my son donated £10 each from their birthday money to take bags of food and toiletries to cubs to be sent on. I am so very proud of them both. Sammie Peckover, email
Food not solar THE ongoing conflict in Ukraine has serious implications which will affect the long term future of food prices, farming and food production in Britain. Ukraine exports more than 25 million tonnes of wheat a year; 15% of the world’s wheat exports. It is one of the four major world exporters of grain. It has just been announced by Ukraine that, because of the invasion by Russia, the planting of this year’s grain crop has been delayed, if not totally wiped out in parts. This means there will be no exports of grain in 2022, as they will need it for their own consumption. It does not take a crystal ball to see that if we do not look to our own resources to feed ourselves, then the future will look very bleak indeed. This then brings in the question as to why thousands of acres of agricultural land, capable of food production, is being proposed for adaptation to solar panel farms? There are a number of proposals for solar panel farms being considered locally affecting excellent agricultural land – the largest of which is the one near Hazelbury Bryan, 190 acres of an industrial power plant across prime farmland in an AONB. If allowed to go ahead, land will be lost for food production for the next 40-plus years. Climate change will only add to the problem; as crop yields fall where droughts are becoming the norm, populations will look to move, with the accompanying conflicts that will ensue as a consequence. David Armitage, Sturminster Newton
Car Parking Charges I am writing to congratulate Dorset Council on making my working life considerably more difficult. Along with high inflation, record price rises for fuel and an increase in National Insurance and Council Tax, you have almost doubled the cost for me to park my car in the Long Stay car park in Wimborne, which today went up from £3.20 a day to £6.00. Forget about inflation running at 8% or fuel at 40% – you have managed a very profitable 87+% overnight! As this car park, along with many others, appears to be run by a private company, it makes me wonder who Dorset Council is actually working for: residents and council tax payers in Dorset; or the private companies that are making an absolute killing from these exorbitant charges. What, I wonder is your “cut”? Of course this rise will be justified as part of a wider “green” agenda to encourage people out if their cars and on to public transport, but in reality it is nothing of the sort. I cannot use public transport to get to Wimborne from where I live in North Dorset, as the service is functionally useless for work purposes (try it yourself and see). Which means the price rise is simply nothing more than a good, old-fashioned rip-off. As with so many aspects of government, both local and national, it leaves me seething at the complete lack of consideration by those elected (and not elected) to power towards the population they represent. Shaun Linsley, Stour Provost
Misleading increase in Council Tax precepts? Yet again, Dorset Council has grossly misled Council Tax Bill payers regarding the annual percentage increase of the Adult Social Care Precept. The charge this year for my Band E property is £248.16. Last year, the charge was £226.49. Elementary mathematics shows this to be a 9.5% increase – yet on my bill the ‘change from previous year’ is shown as 1.0%. Last year, the actual increase was 37.7%, when the claimed increase was 3.0%. Following correspondence with Dorset Council on this gross misrepresentation, the justification for this chicanery is on the basis that the mathematics is ‘prescribed by government’. I have chased down the associated legislation – and while their thus authorised convoluted arithmetic employed may technically legitimise Dorset Council’s claimed percentage increase, it nonetheless does not represent to the bill payer the true ‘change from previous year’. I have no truck with the amount charged to provide this important service – my dissatisfaction is with the Council’s duplicity of its presentation. Alan Bennett, Leigh
On a Cow’s Life Thank you for tackling the BBC’s Panorama show on the dairy industry (‘Is Hardy’s ‘vale of little dairies’ a place of brutality?’, March issue) . I’m not a farmer, have no ‘insider’ knowledge, and I was horrified by the programme. It was reassuring, then, to read what experienced local farmers (Surely the writer Andrew Livingston is your columnist and also a farmer?) condemning the actions seen in the programme. James Cossins’ words ‘if this is farming, I want no part of the industry’ had more truth in it than the whole Panorama investigation, I felt. I do understand the need for balanced reporting, but I felt the closing paragraph being given to the Vegan Society representative tilted what up to then had been an interesting and fair article. It left a feeling of judgement on an industry which the rest of the article had seen as unfairly attacked. John Grey, Sherborne
A deep thank you We wanted to express our sincere gratitude & thanks from the bottom of our hearts you all helped save my husband’s life… We hope this message will reach out to all those persons who helped us on St.Leonard’s Avenue, Blandford Forum on the morning of Sunday 20th February 2022; you all played a very important part in saving my husband’s life. We wanted to reach out to send a personal message to express our sincere thanks & gratitude to all those who appeared literally out of nowhere that day and helped in every way – you were all like angels. By providing immediate medical assistance you all helped save my husband’s life. We are extremely fortunate & blessed to say that two weeks on he is still with us, and though he remains critically ill he is on his way to making a full recovery with the help of all those people above, the Dorset Ambulance & the amazing NHS staff at Dorchester Hospital. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts Patricia & Family, email
On Tales from the Vale I don’t feel the need to obey his instructions and ‘email the editor’ (March issue, p.22) about Mr Palmer’s innocuous views on women driving in Saudi. Likewise, I see no reason to complain about his ‘Mr Bush and his broccoli’ story. However, I don’t appreciate his need to bash Sherborne’s charity shops – it’s not the first time he has pointed out that books in Sturminster Newton’s Emporium are a quarter of the price. The Emporium no doubt has a quarter of the overheads the Sherborne charity shops have. It’s not a competition Mr Palmer – and we’re all welcome to vote with our feet. With the price of fuel the way it is, that small saving of 75p a book would be gone of Sherborne residents chose to drive to Sturminster Newton anyway. Annie Calsop, Stalbridge
I do really enjoy reading your magazine as it covers such a wide range of interesting subjects. However what you write about as ‘Blackmore Vale’ is mainly about North Dorset and hardly ever covers anything in the South Somerset area of Blackmore Vale. I would like to see more content about places such as Templecombe, Horsington and Henstridge. I was brought up in that area during WW2 and I am sure you should include the whole of Blackmore Vale and not just that of North Dorset. Apart from that, I think that you are doing a very good job and I wish you every success. David Peckham, Romsey (aged 89)
Abi Carlyle-Clark, Sandroyd’s Deputy Head of Academics, leaves Sandroyd at the end of the spring term to become Headteacher for Semley CE VA Primary. We wish her all the best for this exciting new chapter, and look forward to forging an even closer relationships with Semley School. Abi has been with Sandroyd since 1995, teaching many of our current and past pupils during her time. She joined as a teacher in our junior department, then worked as a Houseparent, and latterly as Deputy Head of Academics where she has truly made her mark on the school.
Sarah Whitty joins Sandroyd in September 2022 to take over the role of Deputy Head, Academic. Originally from Portsmouth, Sarah started her career in Reading for a local primary school before moving to Dubai in 2014, where she joined Dubai British School. In 2018 Sarah took up the post of Deputy Head Teacher for over 600 children in the primary area of the through school. We look forward to welcoming Sarah into the Sandroyd team, and the wealth of experience she brings with her.
Following the crisis occurring in the Ukraine at the moment, as a school, the children decided they would like to help the humanitarian effort by taking part in the following fundraising events.
1. Dress down day for £1 donation (children wore blue or yellow the colours of the Ukraine flag) 2. Sunflower planting 50p donation (the children planted and took home the national flower of Ukraine) 3. Everyone loves a cake stall at the end of the day – we were overwhelmed with the level of donations made by parents and staff, looking beautiful and tasting just as good. The school council did a fantastic job selling the cakes to parents.
We raised an amazing £152 on the day and still have cakes left; the children have agreed all proceeds will be sent on to the Disaster Emergency Committee, who will disburse the funds to Save the Children, Action Aid and British Red Cross as the need arises. Thank you everyone again for your support.
Many are talking about the atrocities in Ukraine – but UK farmers are already fearing the repercussions of the war in Europe’s largest granary, says Andrew Livingston.
2021 Near Kharkiv. Ukraine has the largest area in Europe in arable use, and is a massive producer of barley, wheat, rye, corn and countless other produce. Ukraine has a population of just over 40 million but has the agricultural capabilities to feed 600 million people. Reuters reported recently that Ukraine’s then-agricultural minister Roman Leshchenko said planted acres could be cut in half due to the war. He said farmers in Ukraine may only be able to plant about seven million hectares this year, compared to 15-million last year before the Russian invasion.
For more than a month now the UK population has been horrified as they’ve watched Russian forces invade and attack Ukraine. Twenty-four-hour rolling news and social media have meant that the data and fear that comes with war is being viewed like never before. What the public may not know, however, are the long-lasting consequences the war will have on our own lives safely back in the UK. Fuel prices had been gradually rising since last summer, but in the last month petrol and diesel have gone up nearly 20 pence per litre – the highest price in 14 years. The sharp rise in fuel cost is due to Russia being an oil and gas-rich country. Although it is believed that only 6% of our oil in the UK is imported from Russia, the global reduction in supply has caused the market wholesale price to increase. Unfortunately, the war is due to have larger ramifications than just the cost to run your car or heat your home. The food you eat is already rising in price, and set to go higher; Ukraine and Russia are two of the largest exporters of agricultural commodities.
Less supply, same demand Due to Ukraine having the largest arable land use in Europe, the country is a massive producer of barley, wheat, rye, corn and countless other produce. To put it into context, Ukraine has a population of just over 40 million but has the agricultural capabilities to feed 600 million people. Mole Valley Farmers’ Alternative Feeds Trading Manager Catherine Ward explained the effect of the war: “The trade does not expect to be able to get the normal amount exported from these regions if any. So this tightens [the] supply up, but demand will stay the same, resulting in price increases in those products or replacement products.” Ward buys and sells bulk raw materials and other feed products and says that, in the space of a month, wheat, maize and barley all went up by £100 or just under per tonne. This obviously has huge ramifications on farm, while trying to feed your animals. However, the Mole Valley employee explains that there are other issues raising costs on farm. She continued: “Others have been impacted by the increase in energy costs that have resulted from the war, which impacts on distilling and crushing plants, hitting margins and resulting in higher prices.”
Risk of shut-down in poultry One farmer who has been feeling the squeeze on his farm in West Dorset is chicken farmer Tim Gelfs. He has 15,000 chickens across two sites and explained how dire the current situation really is: “Our feed costs in April will go up to the tune of £6,000 per month above our budgeted price, with little impact on the egg price yet.” If the price he is paid for his eggs isn’t improved he says he will just move away from chickens; fellow farmers he knows have already done the same. “I can close my chicken unit at the end of this crop or whenever it becomes unviable. You just shut it down and then you don’t replace them – simple as that. “I know people aren’t re-ordering pullets because the pullet price has gone up over a pound a pullet because of the feed and fuel costs; a lot of people just shut down.
West Dorset chicken farmer Tim Gelfs has 15,000 Lohmann Brown chickens across two sites. “Our feed costs in April will go up to the tune of £6,000 per month above our budgeted price”
Feeding ourselves This isn’t the first time that food security issues have flared up over the last few years; in March 2020, as the world shut down due to COVID-19, fears of empty shelves in the supermarket began to heighten. The NFU Poultry rep for Dorset says that the country needs to be self-sufficient and food secure. He said: “We should be producing enough food that we can feed our country in calories every day, rather than going for 60% or 70% as that is no good if we can’t buy 30% from elsewhere. “Nowadays we will always buy food from abroad because we’ll want choice in the supermarket. But, if we haven’t got that choice, we’ve got to produce it here.”
Doubly ambitious Currently, in the UK, the National Farmers Union plans for agriculture to be carbon neutral by 2040. To do this the countryside is going through a major transition. Crops are being removed as farmers are being paid to have wildflowers, wild animals and the public roaming in their field – but is this right? Gelfs says we need to try to do our bit for the environment. He said: “I don’t know if you can achieve both but it’s worth looking at and it’s worth exploring it. To say that either we’ve got to produce food or look after the environment is a bit of a no no going forward because the population is going to grow so they’ve got to go hand in hand. “Whether there’s a food crisis or not at the moment, longer-term we have to balance each of them out because if we just buy our food from abroad and we keep our countryside looking lovely and full of birds and bees, all we’re doing is exporting the problem to a different country. It’s a world problem, so we’re not actually sorting it.”
Children add personal messages of hope as aid trucks depart for Ukraine following record fundraising drive by Bryanston pupils.
Bryanston School’s annual Charities Weekend was organised by Head Girl, Esme Thomas, and Head Boy, Spencer Davies, in support of their chosen charities – #Willdoes, a Dorset mental health charity, and the ‘Girls will be Girls’ programme. In view of the immediate and growing humanitarian crisis, they also organised a special fundraising auction for the people of Ukraine.
Aid and messages The enormous fundraising effort paid for over 22 tons of medical kit, a huge quantity of tinned food, well over a hundred sleeping bags and blankets, 40,000 nappies and other much-needed supplies, as well as a bulk supply of food for refugee welcome centres in Moldova and Slovakia. Personal messages from Bryanston pupils were also included in nearly 400 special fun packs for Ukrainian children. One lorry was loaded with specialist medical supplies off-site, but pupils were able to give the second lorry loaded with humanitarian aid an enthusiastic send-off as both vehicles started their 1,500-mile journey. “Raising so much money at such short notice for the people of Ukraine was very challenging but also very fulfilling,” says 18-year-old Esme. “We’re over the moon that our efforts will do so much to help improve the lives of so many people. I’m also really pleased we’ve been able to support a programme that is helping young girls from Nepal, Myanmar and Cambodia into education, as well as a more local charity that is so close to our hearts.” “We’re indebted to the entire Bryanston community for everyone’s generosity and enthusiasm,” adds 18-year-old Spencer. “pupils from all year groups have done a sterling job in helping to pack and sort so many pallets of baby materials, sleeping bags, personal hygiene products and fun packs for children that are now on their way to Ukraine. It really has been a case of everyone wanting to do something to help!” More than 12 pallets of aid were loaded onto the two lorries; they are expected to arrive at the Ukrainian border on the 4th April.
Charities Weekend Open to parents and staff at the school, the weekend featured sponsored personal challenges, a concert by bands and musicians from the school, a lunch for friends and family, a fashion show, a dog show and a special dinner for pupils in their final year at the school. The Silent Auction for Ukraine benefitted from the advice and support provided by Jumblebee – the prizes were donated by parents, staff and local companies, and included everything from a pizza evening with a pupil’s favourite teacher and golf course tickets, to a stay in a holiday cottage and overseas trips.
More than aid As well as the humanitarian mission to Ukraine, the Charities Weekend fundraising has supported Willdoes and United World Schools. Dedicated to the memory of William Paddy, a sporty and charismatic child who grew up near Swanage and known to a number of Bryanston pupils, Willdoes promotes mental and physical health, social inclusion and wellbeing for young people across Dorset and the surrounding area. United World Schools is an international education charity that builds schools, empowers communities and transforms the lives of children in deprived and remote areas of Cambodia, Myanmar and Nepal. This is the second time the charity has benefitted from funds raised from Bryanston’s Charities Weekend.
When Idris Briggs (year 4) saw someone sitting on the ground outside some shops, his mummy explained that some people do not have homes to shelter them and keep them safe. Idris was upset, and wanted to do something to help, so Mummy explained about getting people to sponsor you to help raise money for charity.
“I decided to raise money by swimming. I used to be very frightened of the water, but two and a half years ago I set myself a challenge to overcome my fear. Now I feel safe in the water and I love swimming. I have not yet swum a length on my own and wanted to challenge myself by swimming as far as I can, hopefully a whole length or more! Idris raised a fantastic £445 for Centre Point!
