Pupils make plea to Prime Minister (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Pupils make plea to Prime Minister

AUGUST 6: PUPILS from a Swindon secondary school have written to Prime Minister Tony Blair asking him to help make poverty history.

The letter was written after a week of fundraising activity at the school which all pupils were involved in.

It started with the year seven and 10 pupils taking part in a tutor period looking at the Make Poverty History campaign.

The children then wrote a plea to the G8 leaders to allow every child to have access to free education.

The year nine pupils played the Trading Game during Religious Education classes.

This is a game which helps students to understand the frustrations felt by poor countries trying to compete in trade with richer nations.

Then each year group had an assembly, which looked at the life of an Indian girl who had been sold by her parents for £6 because they were so poor.

The students saw how an educational charity had rescued her and given her the chance to go to school.

Finally staff at the school made cakes, biscuits and drinks using Fair Trade products.

Headlands head teacher Jan Shadick, pictured, praised the hard work of all the pupils who took part in the campaign.

"It is great to see young people being passionate about world issues.

"This has been a very successful campaign."