Virgin adventurers set out to raise funds for the Eve Branson Foundation
A group of brave adventurers from across the Virgin family are on a mission to raise funds for the Eve Branson Foundation. Led by Virgin Atlantic pilot Chris Hall, the team are facing thick ice and snow to climb over 4,167 metres to the summit of Mount Toubkal in Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains.
Funds raised by this adventure will help to open the doors of a new study centre for secondary school pupils in Asni, a small town in the foothills of the High Atlas Mountains.
“Spurred on by Chris Hall’s fundraising motto ‘Life begins at the edge of your comfort zone,’ the climb will take in the Berber villages where the Eve Branson Foundation’s projects are based – with a few mint tea pit-stops along the way!” Danielle Ford, programme manager at the Eve Branson Foundation, said. “£20,000 has already been raised by this amazing group and will help more young people to take their next step in education.”
Asni Lycee, the local school, welcomes over 1,000 boys and girls. However, the school only has capacity for 500 pupils at any one time. Many attend only two or three hours of lessons each day, unable to access full-time learning. There is nowhere for pupils to study or revise and few have a quiet space at home. Many find it particularly hard to study in their homes and often they will be seen studying in the street outside. Many young people are at risk of dropping out of school due to oversubscribed classrooms and the lack of a quiet study space during exam periods.
The Eve Branson Foundation plans to develop and operate a study centre close to the main school. It will house two large, secure study rooms providing a quiet learning zone for up to 80 students, with a space for boys and girls, a technology area and a small reference library. The centre will help to safeguard important educational gains and future life chances for young people in Asni, helping students to stay in education who would otherwise be at risk of dropping out.
Find out more about the challenge and donate to the Eve Branson Foundation.