A 32-strong group of Renfrewshire Council employees set off this week to the East African country of Malawi with a special send-off from Renfrewshire’s Provost, Anne Hall.
Provost Hall was on hand to see the team leave from Paisley on a 7,500 mile journey to the village of William where they will build and renovate school and other facilities for the Classrooms for Malawi project.
The 16-day trip will help over 600 local children currently with little or no access to education.
The group has raised over £70,000 which will largely go towards funding the building materials used.
Provost Hall said: “I’ve been following the fundraising efforts of the Classrooms for Malawi team with great interest and it’s great to be here today and see them with their families as they get ready to set off.”
“It will be a great adventure, one I’m sure they’ll never forget, but one with a real purpose and by travelling all that way and taking their skills and experience to a place where they are really needed, they will transform the lives of so many children.”
Elaine Scott, Building Services Operations Manager and part of the team going to Malawi, said: “Two million children in Malawi are either taught in unsafe and unfit classrooms, outdoors, of cannot go to school because the facilities are not there. We want to do our bit to help end this situation.
“Classrooms for Malawi does this in a very sustainable way so we will be taking our trades skills over there and working with local people on site – as well as building new facilities, we hope to transfer the skills that will help their local workforce.”
The project can be followed over the 16 days of the trip at www.facebook.com/