Charity & Advocacy
Charity & Courageous Advocacy
“Love your neighbour as yourself” (Mark12: 29-31 NCV)
Our pupils have an excellent grasp on the meaning of belonging to a local and global community and the sense of responsibility that comes with belonging. Thereby developing their ability to empathise and make a small sacrifice to benefit others. Together we consider the beauty and fragility of our environment, the actions we take, and the impact these actions may have on the well-being of everyone.
Our school community and curriculum actively embraces a responsibility for the world in which we live.
We are incredibly proud that we have achieved the Bronze Award status in Christian Aid's Global Neighbours scheme in recognition of our wide-ranging steps to love our global neighbour. We are now busy working to ensure we continue to look for further opportunities and work towards the Silver Award.
Here are some ways we show our connection with, and care for, the world in which we all live and care for the people who live in it.
Comic Relief 2022
Our School Council last year voted on the charities they most felt we should support as a school. Unanimously the council voted in favour of Comic Relief, recognising the work the charity does in this country and in some of the world's poorest communities. On Friday 15th March we wore red and raised money for the charity. This is partnered with this term's value of Justice, where we are seeking to understand fairness, recognise how to stand up for those who need our help, and fight against injustice. Comic Relief is helping us put justice into action! We are so pleased that we raised £276!
Nativities raise funds for Mary's Meals
Wow! What a week! We definitely think that KS1 desrve a 10! Their performance of 'Lights, Camel, Action 2 - The Sequin' was just 'fabulous darlings!'. All performances were brilliant and the confidence and self-assuredness displayed by the children was remarkable.
The KS2 Carol Service was simply beautiful. The candle light, singing and confidence of the Year 6 readers showed that every single child contributed to a reflective and very spiritual service. The atmosphere was not only created by the candles but by each and every child and class.
The retiring collections made a fantastic £100 to support the charity Mary's Meals. Our school have recently been reflecting on how we want to make a difference on a long term basis with a charity that is close to all our hearts and the children have spoken confidently and passionately about children around the world not all receiving food and education. Because of this our School Council and KS1 classes have decided that they would like to donate all proceeds from our refreshment donations to Mary's Meals.
Christmas Gifts
To be truly living out our values at Ridgeway Farm CE Academy, we decided as a staff team that for Christmas this year, instead of receiving the gifts that our families so generously give us, we would like families to donate food which will be donated to the Swindon Food Collective. We have been absolutely blown away by the generosity of our families, showing true compassion for others. Thank you families, for supporting us in making a difference to those in our community.
Harvest festival supports Swindon Foodbank
A fabulous harvest display was created through the generous community donations for our annual Harvest Festival. Thank you again for all your generous gifts. Between Ridgeway Farm, our partner school Lydiard Millicent CE Primary and All Saints Church at Lydiard Millicent we gave 340kg of food plus two cash donations.
Apple Tree Cake Sale
Apple Tree raised an astonishing £90 for their chosen charity, Green Fingers. This charity support Hospices looking after very poorly children and families by creating amazing outdoor spaces for them to enjoy and spend time together in. A huge thank you to Apple Tree families for their cake donations this morning, without your support this wouldn't be possible and another huge thank you to all of the Ridgeway Farm community for helping show our youngest children what a difference we can make to others!
Cherry Tree Tidy Up!
As part of Key Stage 2 discussions around living on a newly built estate, the impact on the enviroment and the recognition of the need to take care of where we live, the children from Cherry Tree class decided to do a litter pick of the local area, helping to take care of their local area. Whilst out collecting litter they were able to talk to local residents about the importance of taking care and clearning up after ourselves. They did a fantastic job and their work was much appreciated!
Other Charities we have supported this year:
- Macmillan Cancer Support ~ £278.97 raised by our cake bake sale and coffee morning
- British Legion Poppy Appeal ~ £160.89 raised by sales of poppies and legion poppy stationary
- Children in need ~ £141.30 raised by our non school uniform day
- Sport Relief - £153 raised by our sport non school uniform day
- Sports Relief ~ a sponsored run, organised by the School Council raised £81.41
