Yarm School community rallies together for huge donation to foodbanks in ‘Giving Week’

Yarm recently held its annual ‘Giving week’ with pupils and staff contributing a fantastic 1,171kg worth of donations for those in need this Christmas.

The charitable initiative, which supports local organisations including Sprouts Community Food Charity, Challoner House, the Trussell Trust, and the Redcar Area Foodbank, focuses on providing donations that can improve lives, especially during the festive season when the strain on local food banks is at its peak.

Each of the school’s four Houses were assigned a specific area of focus, ranging from canned and dry goods to hygiene products. Donations were brought into school and collected over a week in the lead up to Christmas. The items will be distributed to the local charities during the holiday break.

Pupils and staff participated generously, with Music Teacher Mr Williams kindly matching the number of tins donated by his whole tutor group! Bede House held a competition to see which class brought in the most donations per head, with Mrs Lodge’s class victorious and one pupil bringing in an impressive 23 items.

Dr Huw Williams, Headmaster at Yarm said: “At Yarm we foster the spirit of community and value the contributions that our pupils and staff make to society.

We encourage pupils to be involved in community partnerships and to consider the impact of their time given for others through volunteering and school-based projects.

Giving Week focuses on supporting local foodbanks, which play a crucial role supporting many families and individuals, especially over the festive period.

I am proud that our students, staff and school families have donated generously and have made a difference.”

Debbie Fixter from Sprouts Community Food Charity said: “Thank you to everyone at Yarm School for your significant donation. The people and families we work with are finding it incredibly difficult, with the rise in food and fuel costs exacerbated at this time of year, with the added financial pressure of Christmas.”