Thank you so much to Vets with Horsepower for your generous donation which helped purchase a new motorbike.
Sarah’s blog 1/11/26
Six years ago, the elders at Strathblane Parish Church gave money for a motorbike so that Levison could do outreach work. Prior to that he only had a push bike. That motorbike has been invaluable but has recently broken down for the final time. Thanks to a generous donation, Levison has a lovely new motorbike.
Vets with Horsepower is a charity that has supported us for the past few years. The charity is run by very skilled and knowledgeable equine vets who, as well as loving horses, all have a passion for motorbikes. Hence Vets with Horsepower! Each year, they donate their time and talents to travel abroad giving lectures in their specialised subjects. We are very grateful for their support for our charity.
Because of their love of motorbikes we thought it very appropriate to use some of their donation to purchase a lovely new motorbike. On Thursday, Levison travelled to Tanzania to purchase a new motorbike where there was a better selection of bikes to choose from.
Levison thanks the donors very much and said how pleased they are to have a new motorbike and how it will make life a bit easier.
He said “the bike will really help us in:
Making timely follow-ups on our BFSS students who are not turning up for classes, sick or in trouble.
Distance transportation for delivering food parcels to sponsored children who aren’t able to come to Bright Futures Campus.
Help in monitoring of our projects like Bola Yane Project.
Reaching areas where there are no proper roads, or taking short cuts where cars cannot go.
As fuel is so expensive in Malawi, it is cheaper to use a motorbike than a car.”
Vets with Horsepower…. thank you again to you all and your supporters for your generosity and help. We really appreciate the difference you are making by helping us to continue Changing Lives (in) Malawi, Sarah x
Levison with the new motorbike at Bright Futures CampusThank you to Vets with Horsepower for the new motorbikeLevison with the new motorbikeLevison (left) with some of the teaching staff
This is part two of My Ball Project – Bola Yane. My previous post was about teachers from 13 schools having two days training at Bright Futures Campus. This blog is about Bola Yane Project going to schools.
Sarah’s blog 25/10/26
This is part two of My Ball Project – Bola Yane. My previous post was about teachers from 13 schools having two days training at Bright Futures Campus. This blog is about Bola Yane Project going to schools.
I’m writing this blog listening to the wind and rain as we (in Scotland) are in the middle of a storm. I am extremely grateful that I am wrapped up warm and that one of my dogs is curled up next to me keeping my feet warm. In Malawi, as they await their rainy season, they are experiencing a heatwave.
Jack Mphande, Senior Rugby Development Officer for Malawi Rugby Union, has had an extremely busy week. He has been teaching touch rugby in the thirteen schools in the Chisenga Zone in Chitipa District. He’s been mindful of the temperatures & ensured students weren’t out in the high temperatures for too long.
This week’s coaching followed up from the work Jack did with teachers from these schools for two days the previous week. The teachers were able to put into action the training they had received with Jack’s support and it looks like everyone did a great job and Jack had passed his enthusiasm to everyone else.
Jack wanted me to share three thoughts with you:
Rugby has taken me to places where I have discovered meanings of life.
What we take for granted is someone else’s prayer point.
I enjoy when I put a smile on someone’s face because of Rugby. (Jack Mphande)
He also told me ‘I stressed much to the students on Values of Rugby – which is Respect, Discipline, Honesty, Teamwork, as some of the values which make a good person in the community.’ Jack Mphande
The thirteen schools in the Chisenga Cluster are :Chirambo, Kakasu, Kabanje, Nsato, Mulembe, Malawa, Chisenga, Kayilizi, Madunda, Kavomolo, Mbalizi, Chambo and Kalanga. I have enlarged the relevant area on the map and hopefully you will be able to pick out where some of the schools are. Bright Futures Campus (secondary school & nursery) is beside where Chambo Primary is on the map.
Some of the schools are not as remote as where Chambo Primary and Bright Futures Campus are situated as they are in more populated areas. However, there are some schools that are even more remote; Mbalizi Primary School for example. The students were absolutely delighted with Jack’s visit as they aren’t used to seeing many visitors. And the fact that he had come all the way from Lilongwe to spend time with them teaching them how to play a new and exciting sport was something new for these children. They don’t usually have visitors to their schools, especially not one from the capital and in charge of rugby development for the whole of Malawi. Jack’s visit has meant a great deal to teachers and students and we are so pleased that Jack has been part of the Bola Yane project and is committed to touch rugby being played in all schools.
Jack was very grateful that we had paid for a motorbike and driver to take him to all the schools he needed to get to….he certainly wouldn’t have managed without the motorbike or the valuable local knowledge of the area. Reaching the outlying schools is difficult and I certainly hadn’t appreciated just how remote some of these schools are.
‘When they heard that I will come back on the final tournament day, they were very happy. And some of them were inspired by me when I was telling them that sports is my career. I told them they should work hard to do both school and sports, but school first and then sports.’ Jack Mphande, Senior Rugby Development Officer, Malawi Rugby Union.
Jack’s photos show some of the issues students face trying to walk to school and back safely. Also, these streams are at their lowest now, as rains are expected and, during the rainy season will be unsafe and impossible for children to cross to get to school. You will also see from one photo, the puddle the children at one school are drinking from. Lack of sanitation and safe drinking water is another big issue for children living rurally and attending these remote schools.
We are very grateful to Chitipa District Council for supporting My Ball Project – Bola Yane and allowing us to support sports development in rural schools in the Chitipa Zone with The William Stewart Foundation (NGO). Thanks also to Patrick Simwayi, Education and Sports Officer, for making time to attend Jack’s teacher training event at Bright Futures Campus. It was good that he was able to see the programme of what Jack would be sharing with teachers and students at the thirteen schools.
As you can see, some schools have received preloved sports kit already. Those that haven’t yet, will be receiving sports kit that has been donated to us and we have boxed up and sent via The Bananabox Trust Container. Two schools so far have also benefitted from receiving boxes of books as part of our School Literacy Project. These are Chambo Primary and Kalanga Primary. Primary School exam leavers pass rates have risen by 19% in these two schools. We will be sharing boxes of books with these other schools as we have more preloved books donated to us.
These are the children that are benefiting from the help of our supporters. Having matching sports kit makes a difference to self-esteem and confidence. Playing team sports helps develop skills and children can forget about their problems and the extreme poverty in which they live whilst they are concentrating on the game with their friends. Children can have dreams whilst wearing a sports kit. A student said to Jack ‘In my life I didn’t ever dream that I will find a sport which I can play but I think this one I can play’. (rugby) Quotes like this are powerful.
‘I was enjoying coaching them because they were all paying much attention and open to learn the sport. And hearing that I am Senior Rugby Development Officer for the whole country, that also meant something to them.’ Jack Mphande
One of the teachers told Jack, ‘We are very happy that we have added another type of sport. Everyone just knows football and netball so the coming of rugby will help our students to have more varieties of sports to choose. But I think rugby is easy and full of fun and many will go for it.’
I hope you will agree that Jack has done an amazing job with delivering touch rugby training to teachers and students at 13 rural schools over the past week and a half. Obviously there are costs involved in providing quality sport in schools like this as part of the Bola Yana project. We intend to have a school league and also a tournament in May or June next year. If you would like to help us with the financial costs of this project you can either email contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com for bank details or give to our fundraiser on our new fundraising page https://localgiving.org/fundraising/changinglivesmalawisportstournaments
So now that you’ve got to the end of my blog, please enjoy the photos and videos! If you like our projects then please do sign up to receive the blogs, follow us on social media and share with your friends. Thanks everyone, Sarah x
Children are walking barefoot along these rocky tracks to get to school
A very skilful driver with a great deal of faith! No choice but to get wet feet!It takes a great deal of skill to get a motorbike across the river safely. You can see from the ‘muddy’ area how big the river will get during the rains making it impossible and dangerous for children to try to cross to get to school.The puddle at one school where the children drink from
A huge THANK YOU to The Rotary Club of Allander and The Rotary Foundation for supporting this project financially and Rotary District South Scotland for facilitating the grant application.
Sarah’s blog 21/10/26
A solar irrigation kit has been a long time coming but it has finally arrived. It is going to make a big difference to the agricultural projects at Bright Futures Campus.
A huge THANK YOU to The Rotary Club of Allander and The Rotary Foundation for supporting the purchase of a solar irrigation kit. Also thank you to Rotary District South Scotland for facilitating the grant application. Stuart from The Rotary Club of Allander (Milngavie) put a lot of work into the grant application. We are grateful for the continued support and links with their club. I am looking forward to seeing them again next month.
As you can see from the videos, everything is working. The pump was being tested in a water barrel and the water being collected in buckets. There is also a huge length of hosepipe for when this solar irrigation kit is set up properly to water the crops.
I’ll share more photos and videos when I receive them. We are delighted that this is another example of teamwork making a brighter future at Bright Futures Campus.
If you’d like to help with supporting a project you can email contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com or why not have a look at our new fundraising page and make a small donation towards the projects we are helping to support Changing Lives Malawi | Localgiving . Thanks again to our Rotarian friends for their support, Sarah x
Back in May, when Liz and I visited Malawi, Levison presented ‘Bola Yane’ project. This translates as ‘My Ball’ project at a Council meeting in Chitipa. I was invited to go with him which was an honour. It was very interesting to be a small part of one of these monthly meetings. Bola Yane is a sports project reaching all the schools in the Chisenga Zone. This time My Ball Project – Bola Yane – Rugby is the subject.
This project is engaging young people in sport, giving them skills, promoting teamwork, discipline and confidence. Through our supporters, we are able to send preloved sports clothes and balls to share with teams at the various schools in the area. Even having a smart, matching sports kit, is making a huge difference to vulnerable children being able to feel they belong and are part of something important. They know people that they have never met are thinking about them when they are donating preloved sports kit. We are delighted that so much sports kit is being recycled and reused and having a new lease of life!
Jack Mphande, Senior Rugby Development Officer for Malawi Rugby Union, and a very good friend of ours, has once again travelled to Chitipa from Lilongwe to teach touch rugby. We are so grateful for Jack’s commitment and enthusiasm and knowledge. He is a true ambassador for rugby and wants to see his sport grow and also the young people benefitting from all that rugby has to offer. Jack is wearing red trousers in the photos.
Jack spent Thursday and Friday teaching and coaching teachers from 12 local schools. We are also grateful to Patrick Simwayi, District Education Sports Officer, for his support for the project and attending the training event for the teachers. Patrick was guest of honour at the Celebration Day when Liz and I were in Malawi. He is now another friend of ours and we thank him for his help with supporting the vulnerable children in the Chisenga education zone. Patrick is wearing the green t-shirt.
Jack will be visiting schools in the area this week, working with those teachers who attended the training sessions and students at those schools. Patrick will also be joining him in is role as the District Education Sports Officer. I will share more photos in another post and introduce a few more people from the photos.
Thank you so much to Jack and also to Patrick. And not forgetting Levison and team who have facilitated and hosted the event, we are very grateful. I hope you enjoy the photos and videos of My Ball Project – Bola Yane – Rugby. Thanks also to Levison, Jack and Elisha for the photos and videos.
All of these events cost money to put together and we need to fundraise for them. So if you would like to support touch rugby in rural northern Malawi, we would love to hear from you. We are looking for donations to send boxes of kit. Also to feed teachers and children at these events and to pay the transport costs for Jack for him to come from Lilongwe on the bus. In Jack’s words ‘Rugby Rise Malawi’. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Thank you, Sarah x
ps we have a new fundraising page that I wanted to share. Children desperately need food ahead of the rainy season and also exercise books that they cannot afford. Please read the fundraisers and donate if you can. Thanks, Sarah x https://localgiving.org/charity/changing-lives-malawi
There shouldn’t be any need for an International Day of the Girl Child. Year after year charities and organisations highlight the issues girls all over the world face. Is anything improving? Is anyone listening? read today’s blog.
Sarah’s blog 11/10/26
There shouldn’t be any need for an International Day of the Girl Child. Year after year charities and organisations highlight the issues girls all over the world face.
Is anything improving? Is anyone listening?
For the girls we help to support, yes some things are changing for the better; however much still needs to be done;
Vulnerable girls (and boys) sponsors are benefiting from free secondary education. However more sponsors are needed to help us provide free education to more students at Bright Futures Secondary School.
The period poverty project is enabling girls to learn how to sew reusable sanitary pads. This ensures girls have access to school all month like the boys do. Why should they have to hide at home until they have finished menstruating! Girls deserve equality.
We responded to the request to provide whistles to try to keep girls safe from being attacked and raped on the way to and from school. Girls who live closer to school can walk in groups but it’s those who are further away that are more at risk. Why should they have to wear a whistle in the hope it keeps them safe? Girls and women are the ones walking long distances to fetch water. Why should they be worrying about safety as well as the laborious jobs they have to do?
Despite it being illegal, girls are still being married off too young. Levison and team have prevented several girls being married as young as age 11. By appealing for a sponsor for at risk girls, there is some food going into their homes each month. Families are tempted by the dowry they receive when girls get married. If they have several mouths to feed, and as there is a food crisis and cost of living crisis in Malawi, maybe they feel this is the only choice they had open to them? We need to ensure families know they can ask for help.
We will do everything we can to support our friends in Malawi try to ensure no girl in their village and surrounding area is married off too soon. Their futures are being remapped by not having a choice in their early marriage. Having children whilst they are still children themselves can result in death for mother and baby or damage to their bodies. Will you help us help them?
Girls have the ability to change Malawi’s future. By educating them and giving them opportunities and choices and chances they wouldn’t otherwise have had, they can earn a better living for themselves and their families, thus breaking the cycle of extreme poverty. These girls need a helping hand for this to happen. All of us have the ability to help them.
Girls at Bright Futures Secondary School are learning all the subjects that the boys are. They are taking part in sports and learning how to grow crops. Girls are also learning to care for chickens and pigs at the small farm on campus. Carpentry and sewing classes are also providing skills for life.
Will you help us on International Day of the Girl Child? Will you become a sponsor for one of our S1 students please? It’s £25 per month and you can sponsor as an individual or a group of friends or a business. It’s not much to us, less than £1 per day, but it would mean the world to one of these vulnerable girls. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Next year, on International Day of the Girl Child, I wonder what we will have achieved in the coming year? I wonder how many girls will be matched with a new sponsor to support their secondary education. Join us on this journey to ensure girls are protected from exploitation and early marriage and dying in childbirth and are able to complete their education and their childhood. I am invested in these girls and a better and brighter future for each of them. I hope you are too. Thank you for reading, Sarah x
Read today’s blog… Let me introduce you to some new students! The new S1 students at Bright Futures Secondary School are looking for sponsors.
Sarah’s blog 29/09/26
Let me introduce you to some new students! The new S1 students at Bright Futures Secondary School are looking for sponsors. They need your help to support them through their four years of secondary education. Please will you be a helping hand to one of them? It takes a village to raise a child…will you be part of their village? Please?
Bright Futures Secondary School is a small private secondary school that we raised funds to build as there were not enough places in local government secondary schools. Also, none of these young people could afford to attend secondary school. They are mostly orphans living with extended family. All are living in extreme poverty.
We are responsible for paying the teachers. We are responsible for all the stationery and supplies that these students require. Also everything else they need to help them succeed and have a brighter future. With these gifts they will have choices and chances that they wouldn’t otherwise have had. As you can see, the students have already been provided with school uniform. We thank everyone who has provided either new or preloved uniform for use at Bright Futures Secondary School. It really helps boost confidence and self-esteem to have ‘new’ smart clothes and to feel they are an important part of the school community.
We insist that the students have a nutritious cooked meal each lunch time. For most, this is their only meal each day. Without this food, how would they concentrate? But feeding them all each day costs a lot of money.
This is why we need your help and support. Can you sponsor a student please? It is £25 per month and you can sponsor as an individual, a family, friends sharing the cost, or a club or business could sponsor a young person. £25 per month isn’t much to most of us, but it is a world of difference to each of these young people. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
At Bright Futures Secondary School, class sizes are kept smaller than at government schools so that these most vulnerable teenagers have the best chance possible to pass their national exams at the end of S2 and S4.
As well as their curriculum subjects, Bright Futures Secondary School offers practical lessons like sewing, carpentry, agriculture and animal welfare. Students are growing fruit and vegetables to eat and to sell…the latest crop of bananas are being sold and fertilizer is being bought with the money…so they are also learning business skills and skills for life.
Team sports are a big part of life at Bright Futures Secondary School. As well the playing the national sports of netball and football, we facilitated the introduction of touch rugby in the far north of Malawi which all the young people enjoy.
Times are changing for these young people who, until a few years ago, had no hope of any future apart from working for local farmers in their fields for a pittance. Now they can dream. So please will you help one of the new S1 students at Bright Futures Secondary School who are looking for sponsors? Will you help their dreams become a reality? We can’t do it all on our own, it’s always about team work. Let’s come together to support these young people and continue Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thank you for reading and your support, Sarah x
There was a request for a new pigsty to double the amount of accommodation for the growing pig family
Sarah’s blog 25/09/26
As I had shared in previous blogs, there are new piglets on Bright Futures Campus. They are growing well and are a source of excitement and amusement as well as being a great learning experience. If the children have a spare few minutes, they are visiting the piglets to watch their antics. Even the adults are excited about the new arrivals. As well as new piglets there is now a new pigsty.
The pigsty was not going to be big enough once all the piglets have grown. There was a request for our help to provide a new pigsty to double the amount of accommodation.
This has now been completed and looks fantastic. The pigs will be having enrichment activities and also an area where they can be snuffling around in the mud/soil regularly. The new pigsty looks great and that the pigs and piglets look very happy in their new homes.
The pig project has great potential to help them on the journey towards self sufficiency as some of the pigs and piglets will be able to be sold.
There were 5 piglets in each of the two litters and all are doing well. Many thanks to the charity Vets with Horsepower whose donation has enabled the new pigsty to be built. Your support for our charity makes such a difference and so many young people are benefiting from this learning opportunity. Maybe some of the young people we help to support will become pig farmers in future. Certainly, they will have the skills and knowledge they will need.
If anyone would like to support this project, or any other project, please do get in touch contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Feeding hundreds of malnourished children each week is a big cost. 100 preschool children in nursery are fed each day and there are no big charities feeding children in this area. I will also be sharing information over the next couple of days about child sponsorship for the new students at Bright Futures Secondary School. Each one of them needs support. Will you help one of them whilst they are school? Get in touch to make a difference today.
Levison and team thought it would be a real treat for them to have a few days together, having fun, learning, eating together and building relationships and team spirit.
Sarah’s blog 14/9/26
Last week there was a Summer Camp at BFSS for the students to enjoy before the school year restarted. This was the first ever Summer Camp at BFSS but will now become an annual event, providing funds allow.
The young people who attend Bright Futures Secondary School are some of the most vulnerable in rural northern Malawi. Most are orphans living with extended family. All are living in extreme poverty and do not have enough to eat.
Levison and team thought it would be a real treat for students to have a few days together. Having fun, learning, eating together and building relationships and team spirit and doing things that other young people take for granted.
Bright Futures Secondary School is a small private secondary school, built especially for these vulnerable young people. It gives them opportunities that they wouldn’t otherwise have had and allows them a brighter future.
If it wasn’t for BFSS, then many of the girls would have been married off too soon to older men and already have children or even died through the complications of childbirth as happens to young girls.
We are responsible for this private school. With your help, we can continue to support the running costs including paying teachers salaries and providing students with everything they need for school. Of course, a big cost is that they receive a nutritious cooked lunch each day. For many, this is their only meal of the day.They need this food in order to be able to concentrate and learn.
This is why we need ongoing support and FRIENDS OF BRIGHT FUTURES SECONDARY SCHOOL to ensure the ongoing success of our small private school. We need to ensure a brighter future for these students and students in years to come. The young people know that education is their best way out of poverty.
So as you look at these photos and videos of some of their activities from last week, could you please spare £5 or £10 per month towards core running costs of Bright Futures Secondary School? Could you become a Friend of Bright Futures Secondary School and a friend of these students?
Or could you spare £25 per month towards core help sponsor a student? You could share this cost with friends, family, a club or your business could sponsor a young person’s education.
Amazing things are happening at Bright Futures Secondary School but we need a team to ensure this continues and all costs are covered. Would you like to give a young person a brighter future?
Summer Camp at BFSS saw the students watching a sunrise as well as exercising together. They watched a film and shared snacks. There was a health talk from a local nurse. A teacher from another local school gave them keyboard lessons. There is currently a carpenter working on campus and he supported the students to make their own stools with off cuts of wood. Sewing is always a popular activity and the sewing machines were in use again! These were just a few of the activities.
Thank you to the teachers and all the team behind the scenes who organised everything in advance of the first Summer Camp at BFSS. It’s another incentive to work hard and stay in school.
So enjoy the photos and videos and please, if you can, donate some money towards a brighter future for these amazing young people. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com for our charity bank details and join us to continue Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thanks for reading & supporting, Sarah x
More little piglets! Great news from the pig project at Bright Futures Campus.
Sarah’s blog 31/8/26
There is more good news from Bright Futures Campus. Another five more little piglets have arrived safely.
There is another pigsty being constructed and almost finished. There will soon be plenty of room for the expanding Bright Futures Pig Family.
Mr Kanyimbo, Deputy Head Teacher at Bright Futures Secondary School, is pictured caring for the five more little piglets. He has been working hard alongside a small team of other teachers and staff. They have been looking after the welfare of the adult pigs, the juvenile pigs and these new piglets.
There will be great excitement and interest amongst the students at BFSS when their agricultural lessons start again. They will be delighted to see that there are more little piglets to care for. We all love baby animals, don’t we?
This project has the potential to help the school work towards self sufficiency as more piglets are born and sold. What a great way to learn practical agricultural skills, complementing what the students are learning in the classroom in their agriculture classes. They are also learning about self sufficiency and business.
We are delighted to see that quality education is happening at Bright Futures Secondary School. Students, who are all living in extreme poverty, now have a brighter future. We need to grow our team to continue supporting the school and the young people. Will you be part of our team? Can you spare £5 or £10 per month to make a difference?
Enjoy the photos and videos. There are two videos of the other piglets, born a few weeks ago, now growing well. Thanks to everyone who supports the students. To the organisations and individuals who have believed in us and provided funding for Bright Futures Secondary School.
School starts back very soon and we are looking for sponsors for individual students which is £25 per month and also ‘Friends of Bright Futures Secondary School’ and ‘Friends of Bright Futures Nursery’ to support these projects with a monthly or one off donation. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Will you help us support some of the most vulnerable children in Malawi please? Together, we can be a team that can continue Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thank you, Sarah x
I’m so happy to share that I’ve just heard that all the S2 students at Bright Futures Secondary School have passed their Junior Certificate of Education (JCE)
Sarah’s blog 15/8/26
I’m so happy to share that I’ve just heard that all the S2 students at Bright Futures Secondary School have passed their Junior Certificate of Education (JCE). These are national exams that are taken at the end of second year. More national exams are taken at the end of S4.
This is an amazing achievement for these young people, many of whom are orphans. They have had such difficult childhoods but there are now bright futures for the S2 students. These young people have all suffered loss and trauma and live in tiny huts. Many walk long distances to school. All are all on the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index.
Without their sponsors support they would not have been able to attend Bright Futures Secondary School. Who knows if the girls would have been married with children already? These young people have been given choices and chances that they wouldn’t otherwise have had. There are bright futures for S2 students at Bright Futures Secondary School.
I want to take this opportunity to thank those who sponsor a young person to be at Bright Futures Secondary School, those who donate stationery or preloved uniform and of course the organisations who have gifted bigger amounts of money, meaning we’ve been able to build classrooms, pay staff and supply books and equipment. It’s always about teamwork and we are very grateful for your support. We do need more people to be involved in supporting young people. Could this be something you could help with?
To the young people, we are so proud of you for everything you have achieved and will go onto achieve in future. All we can ask is that you work hard and try your best always. You are making history as, again, there has been 100% pass rate at BFSS.
School opens again next month and these students will be given a party as a reward. They are probably as excited about that as they are about passing their exams!
We are now looking for sponsors for the next intake of s1 students. If you’d like to be a sponsor then please get in touch contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com. Or would you like to become a Friend of Bright Futures Secondary School and make a regular donation each month towards the core running costs of the school.
Clearly these young people are capable and brilliant and are just needing our support to achieve their goals. They know education is their way out of poverty. Let’s give even more students that opportunity and if you can spare a few £££ every month, please do help us continue giving bright futures for S2 students and their friends. Thank you, Sarah x
ps I will add in individual photos of S2 students over the next few days.
Students from Chambo Primary School waiting for the Celebration Day to start when Liz and Sarah were in Malawi in May. Some of them will be students at Bright Futures Secondary School in years to come if we can continue to find financial support to enable them to have a brighter future.
Great news from Bright Futures Campus….five healthy piglets have arrived!
Sarah’s blog 3/8/26
Great news from Bright Futures Campus today and great excitement. One of the pigs has given birth to five healthy piglets. Who doesn’t like to look at photos and videos of new baby animals?
These are the first Bright Futures piglets to be born on campus. They give hope for a brighter future. Students learning how to look after the pigs as part of their agriculture course. By selling some of the pigs it will bring a good source of income enabling this to become a sustainable project.
Money has been sent to start building another pigsty. Thank you to everyone who has contributed towards this project. Should anyone wish to make a donation towards the pig project then you can email for bank details contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com . Or you can donate via the donation page on the website https://changinglivesmalawi.com/donations/ . Our fundraiser to buy extra food for the hundreds of malnourished children and to buy notebooks is still open. We’d love your help to provide for those most in need. gofund.me/48b11b1a1
You’ll see below the video that Liz and Levison made while during our recent trip to Malawi. The pigs and pigsty feature in the video. Whilst Levison had said there could be up to 8 or 9 piglets, he’s absolutely delighted that these five have arrived safely and the pig project is growing. In the video, he shows the maize that is being grown. What he doesn’t say is that, because of the huge numbers of children to feed, this maize will only be enough for two weeks. Then they will have to return to sourcing and buying in maize which is a huge job and cost.
But today is a celebration of five healthy piglets and the promise that hard work and some support to set up sustainable projects will enable the people of Ibuluma to have a brighter and better future. Thanks for reading and supporting, Sarah x
In today’s blog, I am sharing some amazing photos and videos from the BFSS S4 graduation ceremony and party.
Sarah’s blog 26/6/26
In Scotland, where I live, for most, today is the last day of school before the summer holidays. For the S4 students in Malawi, it is their last day of school before their final school exams start on Monday. Today, I am sharing some amazing photos and videos from the BFSS S4 graduation ceremony and party.
The BFSS S4 graduation ceremony and party happened on Sunday afternoon. The teachers did a fantastic job of giving these students a great send off. This is the first lot of students from Bright Futures Secondary School to have completed all four years of education at Bright Futures and be sitting their MSCE exams (Malawi School Certificate of Education). We wish them every success in their exams and for their futures. We are so pleased to have these photos and videos of the BFSS S4 Graduation.
We are all so proud of the young people they have become. Whilst at BFSS, as well as learning the curriculum subjects, they have better numeracy, literacy, they have learned how to grow vegetables and care of chickens, pigs and goats, they have learned how to sew and do some basic carpentry. The students have enjoyed playing football, netball and rugby with their friends.
Above all, they have had the opportunity for a brighter future. Who knows if the girls would have been married off at age 12 or 13 and have had babies by now? Who knows if the boys would have been having to steal to feed themselves? Thankfully, because of the opportunity they have been given, they now have more choices and chances for a brighter future.
Thank you to their teachers for all their hard work. Thank you to the parents and caregivers for encouraging the young people to attend school. Most of these students are either from single parent families or living with extended family. They are all living in extreme poverty and know that education will give them and their loved ones the opportunity of a brighter future.
So we thank their sponsors for supporting these young people through school. Your monthly donation of £25 has provided a nutritious school lunch each day which, for most, is the only food they eat each day. You have also helped provide the stationery that the students need. Periodically, the young people receive new clothes and shoes. As you can see in these great photos and videos, the young people have been given new clothes. The t-shirts were donated by All Saints Junior School in Maidenhead.
So as we say ‘goodbye and good luck’ to these wonderful young people, we are looking for people to sponsor and support students who are looking for a place at Bright Futures Secondary School in September. The more people who want to help, the more young people can be offered a place in S1 in September. We really do need your help to give other deserving young people the opportunity of a brighter future. Will you join us? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com It’s only 85p per day to change a life.
Enjoy the photos and videos and do get in touch if you would like to support a young person like one of these amazing students graduating from Bright Futures Secondary School today. Thanks for reading and supporting the students, Bright Futures Secondary School and Changing Lives Malawi, Sarah x
