Latymer students head for Calais to help refugees keep warm

14 December 2018

Today, the last day of term, 30 Latymer students and four teachers headed off to freezing conditions in France to volunteer with Care4Calais, a humanitarian aid charity distributing much needed aid to the 1,500+ refugees sleeping rough in and around Calais.

They take with them hundreds of bags of warm winter clothing, shoes, tents and tarps, donated by our Latymer community of parents, staff, pupils and alumni, along with £5,000 of funds raised to donate to the charity.

Flynn, one of our students heading to Calais explained why the trip means so much to him: “Going to Calais at this time of year is particularly important with Christmas coming up. We sometimes take for granted how lucky we are during the festive season and I hope to help out as much as I can in spirit and in practical ways.”

Mr Wright, Charities Co-ordinator and Physics teacher at Latymer said: “Following our initial trips in June and October, the whole school has got behind this ‘service learning’ initiative. These donations will have a significant impact on the living conditions of the refugees in and around Calais. We also hope that our students will gain an insight to what it means to be a refugee and encourage them to learn more about this complex issue.”