STUDENTS at Hassenbrook Academy in Stanford-le-Hope have been recognised for their work supporting local charities – and one class has been given a £1,000 grant for its nominated good cause.

The school and students have been working in partnership with social action charity First Give.

The whole of Year Nine took part in the First Give programme as students investigated social issues, and met with local charities in neighbouring communities that address them. Students across the year group took part in a social action week to raise funds and awareness for three chosen charities.

Supporting their chosen charities, students engaged in social action by fundraising and raising awareness, and competed at the school's 'First Give Final'.

At the final, judges watched presentations from the students about their charities and what they had done to support them.

The winning class was awarded a £1,000 First Give grant for their chosen charity, Rainbow Trust children's charity.

Students who supported Rainbow Trust, who work to provide support to families who have a child with a life threatening or terminal illness, developed and delivered a number of social action initiatives, including organising their own fundraising fete with buskers and bake sales, plus activities like a sponsored reading challenge.

Millie, one of the students who took part in First Give reflected on the experience, "What I liked about the First Give programme is that it helps charities in need of more support to help people in need, whilst also helping children to overcome challenges and teaching us to be resilient even when we want to give up."

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Rainbow Trust Children's Charity reflected on the £1,000 gift, saying: "We are incredibly grateful to the winning students at Hassenbrook for all the hard work that went intothis.

"The £1,000 could provide over 30 hours of practical and emotional support for a family caring for a seriously ill child in Essex. We would like to extend a massive thank you to all participating students, and teachers supporting the project; their contribution will go a long way in ensuring that no family goes through the loss of a child alone."

The renewal of Hassenbrook's partnership with First Give means that at least another £1,000 will be reinvested into the local community this academic year through the winning grant to a charity chosen by students.

Principal Sally Feeney said: "Through the First Give programme, our students are given the chance to demonstrate their kindness, generosity and passion for local causes.

"We are extremely proud of the efforts of the whole of year nine. Their engagement and hard work helped raise awareness of a whole range of social issues, and ultimately led to Rainbow Trust securing the £1,000 First Give grant.

"We look forward to working with First Give again this year with our current year nine cohort of students."

The First Give programme is sponsored by the Jack Petchey Foundation, which was set up to inspire and motivate young people across London and Essex. First Give and the Jack Petchey Foundation are currently looking to grow the number of schools they work with in Essex and any interested schools should contact First Give directly via their website: www.firstgive.co.uk.

Louisa Searle Director at First Give said: "More than 198,000 young people have made a difference to thousands of charities across England and Wales through the First Give programme.

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"Time and again they demonstrate how passionate, committed and capable young people are of making a positive difference and helping to tackle some of our most pressing social issues.

"Our partnership with Hassenbrook provides an inspiring example of the impact the programme can have, and we are keen to partner with more schools in Essex, providing the platform for more young people to support the causes they care about."