Pupil Fundraising
The children are encouraged to raise money for various charities and some of this fundraising is done through the PAC.
Examples include:
- taking part in Children in Need, Red Nose Day, and Sport Relief
- second-hand uniform sales
The charities we raise funds for are:
The Varkey Foundation
The Varkey Foundation is a not for profit charitable initiative, aimed at impacting the lives of 10 million children globally. The Foundation is part of GEMS Education, the largest kindergarten to grade 12 private education operator in the world.
Recently speaking at Dubai American Academy, UAE, a GEMS school, President Clinton said, “There will rarely be people who launch something with so much potential to lift the hopes and spirits and dreams of children as this Foundation has done tonight. The benefits from an educated child will affect not only the child itself, but his or her family and the wider community. The Varkey Foundation's commitment will bring that opportunity to millions more children around the world".
President Clinton said the launching of this Foundation “is the latest happy chapter in perhaps the most important under publicized development of the early 21st century, the explosion of non-governmental organizations; private citizens working with governments to do public good. A quality education is the key to solving our most pressing global challenges. Education opens a whole new world of opportunities and choices for millions of underprivileged children.”
Chairman of GEMS Education, Sunny Varkey says, “I believe that education is the most important issue in the world today. The fact that there are 70 million school age children worldwide who have never attended school is intolerable. For us to confront, collectively, all the conflict, the prejudice, poverty, intolerance and unprecedented environmental challenges, we need to improve both the quality and access to education worldwide."
“An education is the biggest gift that a family can receive because it provides them with an opportunity to be lifted out of hardship & poverty. As we celebrate our 50th year anniversary in education, GEMS is all the more committed to play a leading role in improving both the quality and access to education for children.”
The Varkey Foundation, through GEMS Education, will utilize its vast resources and expertise to provide innovative, sustainable solutions to this important global issue. It will involve its 100,000 students from 125 nationalities, its 9,000 staff and hundreds of thousands of parents.
Throughout GEMS’ 50 year history, students, parents, teachers and the Varkey family have raised or contributed in excess of US$50 million for causes that matter most to them. In addition GEMS Education provides scholarships and subsidies to more than 3,000 children in its own network of schools on an annual basis.
The CEO of The Varkey Foundation, Vikas Pota, says the Foundation will focus on four key areas; scholarships for underprivileged children, teacher training, professional development and mentoring for school leaders and providing policy input through its strategic partnerships. GEMS Education already works in partnership with the Clinton Global Initiative, the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, Dubai Cares and Pratham.
Mr Pota says, “The Varkey Foundation was established because we believe our charitable work needed to be more structured and strategic in order to meet our goal of impacting one hundred underprivileged children for every child enrolled at a GEMS school”.