During the October half term break, a team of 21 Year 9 students spent time with a Berber community in rural Morocco and used money that they themselves had raised to uplift vulnerable families.

The girls worked in small groups to visit six families that the local village elders had identified as needing help. They communicated with the families, through interpreters, before deciding how to help them.

Careful budgeting followed as the teams decided how best to sustainably support families with the £2,700 they had raised prior to their departure. To help the families to generate income for themselves, the girls invested in sheep, goats, live chickens, animal food and carpentry tools. They also bought essential items such as blankets, food supplies and clothing and delivered all of this to the grateful recipients before the week was out.  

The team also unearthed a medical problem, so arranged for a 14-year old boy to go to Marrakech for urgent eye tests. These revealed that he is almost blind in one eye so needs prescription glasses, which the girls have already ordered and paid for.

In a jam-packed week, the girls also visited a local salt mine, a women’s co-operative that produces argan oil, the local primary school and a girls’ boarding school.

The trip was led by Redmaids’ High School alumna and international humanitarian Linda Cruse, who said, “Our young people are capable of doing so much more than simply digging a ditch or painting a school when they travel overseas.  

“These students showed themselves to be caring, kind, culturally sensitive and tremendous problem solvers

“They asked insightful questions, which allowed them to develop sustainable solutions for long term economic uplift.

"With these girls as our future leaders - we are in great hands!”