Malawi 2020 initial letter

Feb 2019

Proposed School Visit to Malawi 2021 Date to be Confirmed

Information Meeting Tuesday 19th Feb at 5.30

Dear Parents/Carers,

After previous successful trips to Malawi by other HOPE Trust schools we are researching the organisation of a Barlby High School trip for 2020. Mr Dale has visited Malawi as part of the assessment as to whether a trip is viable and we are provisionally proposing to go during the Easter holidays in 2020. The trip will be open to students who are presently in Year 8.

We are currently at the point of assessing interest to see if the trip is viable.

Any trip to Africa is a potentially life changing experience and is certainly something that we would encourage you to consider if there is any possibility of your son/daughter being able to participate.

The trip is not an organised tour of Malawi, but is a trip visiting local communities and seeing Malawi from a very different perspective. It really will fit with the school moto of “Living Life to The Full” and students will definitely need the school values of graciousness, compassion, kindness, forgiveness, and patience.

What type of student are we looking for:

Students who care about other people. Students who want to make a difference. Students who want to understand more about the world outside of North Yorkshire Students who are not afraid of some hard work. Students who are adaptable.

What can you expect to gain from your experience:

Skills necessary to travel abroad safely and healthily. Knowledge of how a significant proportion of the world live their lives. Knowledge of real life geography, history, healthcare. Perspective on your view of the problems of the Western World. A lifelong love of travelling. A lifelong commitment to helping other people.

Activities that anyone coming could expect to participate in:

A long and tiring day of travel to Malawi (3 flights and a significant amount of time in airport transit). Living for 10 days in a completely different world.

Managing your body in different temperatures, different conditions, with different food. Medium to long road journeys in Africa. Staying in African accommodation: It will be safe, secure and generally fantastic, but for the most part is not luxury. Visiting local people in their villages. Visiting the Mbedza and Accomplish Projects based in and around Zomba: Stove Construction Trees planting Special Education Needs Provision MOSES – Supporting Malawian orphans Songani – community support hub School visits Visit Lake Malawi – the largest lake in Africa – including a boat trip. Visit Mvuu Lodge and Wild Life Reserve – The classic African tourism experience. Visit and stay on Zomba Plateau. Visit Mt Mulanje.

At this stage it is impossible to give an accurate price for the trip. However, we would estimate that a 10 day trip including all of the activities suggested, spending money, vaccinations, visas, passports etc could cost as much as £2500. We are hoping to find external funding for at least part of this cost.

At this early stage we are not looking for parents/students to commit, but come along to an information meeting to gain a better understanding of what a trip to Malawi would entail and what students could gain from it.

We are planning to hold the information meeting on Tuesday 19th Feb at 5.30 in the main school hall.

Yours sincerely,

Nick Dale Faculty Lead – Sport

To see the letter in its original form please click here