In July, twelve of our Sixth Form students participated in the College's annual visit to Nabugabo, a village in South East Uganda, accompanied by our Deputy Head Co-Curriculum, Mr Richard Follett. Working with the local charity The HUGE Partnership, the students have been fundraising for the materials to build a house for a homeless family, raising an incredible £10,000 between them!

Nabugabo Primary School is an NGO, located in a very poor, rural area in south west Uganda. It provides education and care for vulnerable children who would otherwise not be able to go to school. The school is financially supported by The HUGE Partnership, a UK registered charity located in Pangbourne, Berkshire. The school does not receive any government funding.

Pangbourne College has had a long-term partnership with Nabugabo Primary School since 2015. The expedition gives students an opportunity to gain new skills, experience new cultures and perspectives, observe the challenges faced by many communities while creating lasting bonds and memories. In addition, the College has assisted by way of funding several school initiatives including building the Nabugabo school hall as well as a number of community-based projects.

During their ten day expedition, the students spent each day either in the school helping in lessons, running a sports day and assisting with English reading, or working on the building site, primarily bricklaying and plastering. It is such an amazing experience for the students to be taken out of their comfort zones and like true Pangbournians, they all rose to the challenge. Incredibly, the project went from a pile of bricks to an almost finished house in just over a week.

The last part of the trip involved a nine hour drive to Murchison Falls National Park, where the group had the safari experience of a lifetime, particularly on a night game drive watching two leopards in the wild, before finishing up with another long drive to Jinja source of the River Nile, and a white water rafting trip to remember!