Falkland pupils fill their shoeboxes

Each child was given a box to take home to fill with their choice of items suited to their individual selection of an age, range and gender of a deprived child.
The shoeboxes were then handed over to Newbury Rotary Club during the school assembly last Friday.
In total 500 boxes will be shipped from Newbury through the Rotary network to the recipient countries in the coming days.
Inspired by a visit from Simon Tang, a parent, and Rotary Club of Newbury member, the whole school community began collecting goodies for the boxes.
The School Council, who have co-ordinated the collection, said, “It has been a lot of fun finding things to put in the boxes.
“It makes you think about people who are less fortunate than we are. We hope that the children who receive the boxes like what they find inside.”
Mr Tang said: “When I did my initial talk at assembly, I was overwhelmed by the sheer enthusiasm of the children and the willingness of the teachers and other school staff to help out.”
Suzy Hamshaw, a parent at Falkland School said that her children had enjoyed packing their boxes.
“I think they momentarily understand just how lucky they are. It is a fantastic scheme,” she said.
Other local participating groups supporting the current phase include Bucklebury Guides and Mary Hare School.
The Rotary Shoebox scheme was started in 1994 by clubs in North West England and is now supported by clubs throughought the UK.
The scheme now despatches around 60,000 shoebox parcels throughout each year to disadvantaged children and the elderley in many Central and Eastern Europe countries.