Sixth form student sets up coat collection for refugees

Heather, a sixth form student from Lady Manners School in Bakewell has done a fantastic job of raising awareness of the plight of refugees and has mobilised her school mates and teachers to help out too.

Heather came across Care4Calais on Instagram and was amazed by the stories about refugees that she read on there. She couldn’t believe what was happening to such people and how little support was being provided. She told us: “I saw children and young people who were every bit as driven, passionate and smart as me and my friends, sitting in refugee camps, deprived of an education.”

When she saw our #Coats4Calais campaign, Heather realised that her age and position didn’t need to be an obstacle to helping out. In fact she realised that she was surrounded by hundreds of others who might be feeling the same way she did. She started putting posters up around her school and was soon overwhelmed by donations and students who were willing to help.

“To many these coats seem like such a small and simple gift, as we take for granted the gift of warmth, but they send a clear message to refugees; we see you, we want you to be safe, and we care about you. I hope to work with Care4Calais again in the future, to help protect refugees from governments that continue to fail them.”

We are incredibly grateful to people like Heather, who choose to raise awareness and become involved as soon as they can. We would also like to say a big thank you to @derbyshirerefugeesolidarity who will be helping to get these amazing donations to Calais.

If you would also like to start a campaign, donate a coat to your local Care4Calais drop-off point or donate £20 so we can buy a coat for a refugee, follow this link: care4calais.org/coats4calais/