#BringItHome for Cornwall Hospice Care

Penrice Academy Students Fundraise for a Cause Close to Home

This year for their whole school fundraising initiative, Penrice Academy students are coming together to raise money for Cornwall Hospice Care, as their Mount Edgcumbe Hospice is just across the road from the school.

Every year the Penrice Academy Council, made up of 14 students from all years and lead by the Senior Prefects, decide on a whole school charity to support. They discuss their plans once a fortnight and work with staff, students, parents and the wider community to spread the word and make a difference.

Neve Rowe-Hall, Penrice Head Girl, said: “Sadly, a large number of staff and students at Penrice Academy have experienced Mount Edgcumbe Hospice in one way or another and it plays a huge part in the lives of everyone in our community.”

“Cornwall Hospice Care must source 80% of funding themselves, so they rely a great deal on fundraising projects like ours. We are so inspired by what they do we just had to support them this year.”

On Tuesday 4th December, in the run up to the fundraising events, Neve and four other Penrice students visited the Hospice, to meet staff, tour the facilities and to find out exactly where the money they raise this year will go. The filmed Bringing It Home for Mount Edgcumbe Hospice in just two hours and spread the video across the school through assemblies and on social media. You can watch it here.

Neve said: “Those two hours were incredibly powerful – it’s such a wonderful, positive place.”

At 10.30am on Thursday 13th December, 51 students from Year 10 and Year 11 at Penrice Academy begun this year’s 24 Hour challenge – planning to row, kayak and dance their way around Cornwall. They each pledged to raise sponsorship money in advance to add to the overall total.

Supported by a small team of staff, the students clocked enough miles to circle the coast of Cornwall twice over the event on the rowing machines, but more impressively they managed, working in shifts, to dance for 24 hours straight. They shared their efforts on Facebook and Twitter all night.

Dave Palmer, Head of Year 11, said: “I am blown away by the efforts of Year 11 and I have never been more proud of our students than tonight. To think they developed this idea from scratch and largely took control of organisation is truly inspiring and they should also be very proud of themselves.”

“Not to mention their exemplary behaviour, their energy and their spirit, which didn’t waver over the whole 24-hour period.”

The students were joined by Megan Hampton and Jane Appleton from Cornwall Hospice Care, who visited at the start of the event, and they were joined to witness the finale on Friday 14th December at 10.30am by Hospice doctor Emily Russell. Penrice students interviewed Emily the week before as part of their video project.

Emily said: “I’m incredibly impressed by all the students involved in this challenge and their commitment. Their fundraising means that our clinical team can continue to offer the expert high quality care to our patients and support to their carers, family and friends when they need it most.”

The finale of the challenge was also witnessed by hundreds of staff and students and lead straight into Year 7’s Christmas Fair, combined with Penrice’s non-uniform day and Christmas Jumper Day, all of which will see proceeds in aid of Cornwall Hospice Care.

Year 7 also organised their own Christmas Fair themselves, putting together stalls filled with homemade decorations, games, sweet treats and official Cornwall Hospice Care Christmas Decorations. They were also tasked with naming the Hospice’s fish – which will be announced by Hospice staff in the run up to Christmas.

Year 7s have also been selling Christmas Cards for the last few weeks and Year 8 at Penrice have spent five weeks running their own cake sales for all students, one tutor group a week. Many worked hard on marketing strategies, such as delivering cakes around school and booking the Year 8 band to entertain from the stage. They smashed the original target of £250 in the first 5 weeks – with the other half to come after Christmas – and have now tasked themselves with raising £500 as a year group.

There’s more to come from other years too; Year 9 are putting on a Christmas Quiz on Wednesday 19th December and Year 10 plan to organise a whole school Fun Run in Spring 2019.

Neve, Head Girl, concluded: “Fundraising has been a big part of my last four and a bit years at Penrice and is something the school has always encouraged us to run ourselves. It has been a privilege to not only be part of it this year, but to know the money we raise is helping a cause really close to our hearts.”

Watch our video from the 24 Hour Event here

Watch all the posts from throughout the night on Facebook and Twitter.