Bucklebury Church of England Primary School raise over £1,500 for Thames Valley Air Ambulance

A village school raised more than £1,500 for Thames Valley Air Ambulance after running a variety of different fundraising activities throughout the academic year.

Bucklebury Church of England Primary School presented a cheque of £1,586.50 to Clive England, a member of the air ambulance service, on Monday, July 11.

Key events in the school calendar that contributed to the donation included dressing up days, an Easter sponsored walk and the school’s recent drama production of Pirates of the Curry Bean.

Headteacher Andy Higgs said: “We’re really pleased that we managed to donate a good amount, which is all down to the hard work of the children and the generosity of the Bucklebury family.”

Every year at Bucklebury, the school council shortlists a number of charities to potentially support and the student body chooses one that they raise money for throughout that year.

In previous years, the school has supported charities such as Macmillan and Daisy’s Dream.

Mr Higgs said: “From the shortlist this year, the children again chose a charity that supports people in the most difficult moments of their lives and I think that really reflects our school values.”

A lot of the money raised came from sponsorships the children received when they embarked on their two-mile Easter ‘pilgrimage’ from St Mary the Virgin Church back to the school.

The school is also expecting to add a few more hundred pounds to its donation after all of cash they raised during the run of Pirates of the Curry Bean is counted.

Mr England, who had visited the school earlier on in the year to do an assembly talk on Thames Valley Air Ambulance, was very pleased and grateful for the donation.