Sewing classes at Bright Futures Secondary School are helping S3 and S4 students learn extra skills.
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Sarah’s blog 26/10/25
Levison Mlambya, the Director of Bright Futures Secondary School, has sent these great photos and a video of S3 and S4 students who are taking sewing lessons and carpentry classes to learn skills for life.
In the sewing lessons they are learning to use the sewing machines that have been donated and sent on the container via The Bananabox Trust.
Learning skills for life will equip these vulnerable students, who are all living in extreme poverty, with a way to earn money in future, giving them choices and chances they wouldn’t have had previously. Many thanks to the donors of the sewing machines & sewing supplies.
The plan is that during sewing lessons at BFSS, they make reusable sanitary pads and bags to put these in and, when there are enough, give them out to those who need them in various local schools. Your financial support will be so helpful.
Celebrating success at Bright Futures Secondary school is becoming a tradition. All students in S3 had passed their national exams at the end of S2 – Junior Certificate of Education. They were given a party on Friday. Other students joined in at lunchtime but the S3 class were given the afternoon off and were free to continue celebrating and having fun.
Knowing that hard work and effort is celebrated at Bright Futures Secondary School helps to motivate the S1 and S2 students as they look forward to having a party to celebrate their success.
None of these young people have enough food at their homes. Most are orphans living with extended family. All are living in extreme poverty and have suffered trauma. None have money for school fees, new clothes or shoes, stationery or school lunches. That is all free at Bright Futures Secondary School, thanks to their sponsors.
So celebrating their achievements is important. Helping them feel valued is important. Raising their self-esteem is important. Nurturing them to be the best they can be is important. Counselling students and listening to them when they are struggling is important. Supporting these students holistically is important.
A student at Bright Futures Secondary School can expect more than just lessons and passing exams. They can expect support. They can expect understanding. They can expect encouragement. They can expect to be listened to. They can expect the best at Bright Futures Secondary School.
That’s why the staff at BFSS are far more than teachers. We are so grateful for the care and understanding they give to these vulnerable students who have been through so much already. These teachers can and do make a difference and their support and encouragement for the students in their care and the ethos of the school will give these vulnerable teenagers a much brighter future. They are positive role models for these students and we are pleased that they want to help students be the best that they can be.
There are still some new students in S1 who are waiting for a sponsor to help us support their education. Could you give the gift of education and help us continue Changing Lives (in) Malawi? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Celebrating success at Bright Futures Secondary School is important… and look at these smiles which are wonderful to see. Thank you for reading and supporting our work. We need you as part of the team supporting these vulnerable teenagers. Enjoy the photos and videos, Sarah x
We have some projects on fundraising site DonorSee for Bright Futures Secondary School. You can donate via the link or email us for bank details. https://donorsee.com/project/29095?share=1
Today’s blog looks at the ways in which we are trying to improve hunger and malnutrition in Malawi
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Sarah’s blog 16/10/25
Today is World Food Day – are you hungry? What happens if you are hungry? Do you have food in your cupboards? Are you able to go to the shops? Most of us are fortunate enough to be able to eat every day. We might not be rich, but we have enough to be able to eat at least once every day. This World Food Day – are you hungry?
Many of the children and young people we are helping to support DO NOT have enough to eat. Many DO NOT eat every day. How can we expect them to learn and concentrate at school if they are hungry? if they are malnourished? If they cannot sleep at night because of pains in their tummies? How can we expect them to grow properly if their bodies don’t have enough nutrients? How can we expect them to thrive when their basic needs aren’t being met?
WE NEED YOUR HELP to support a community, living in extreme poverty, in rural northern Malawi, towards sustainability and self-sufficiency. Please do keep reading to see how we are helping and what you can do.
We are sending enough money to run a feeding programme once a week. It’s not enough but all we can afford whilst we are supporting a better and brighter future. We keep trying to get bigger charities involved but, unfortunately, they aren’t working with children that far north. Up to 500 children, some walking miles, some carrying younger siblings, come every week for their one substantial meal of the week. Could you spare £5 or £10 per month to support the weekly feeding programme please? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Bright Futures Nursery is for up to 70 vulnerable preschool children who are fed at every session. This is making a big difference to their health. Again, it’s not much, but it is better than nothing. You could make a difference by making a one off donation or gifting a small monthly amount to support this project.
During sporting events, we ensure that everyone taking part receives a substantial meal and drink so they have enough energy to take part and the food and drink is part of the excitement of the day. Would you like to make a donation towards providing food at a sporting event? Which sport would you choose?
Students at Bright Futures Secondary School, which was built for vulnerable teenagers who cannot afford secondary school fees, are matched with a sponsor to help pay for their education which includes having a free school meal each day. For many of the students, this is their only meal each day. Their families can share the small amount of food they have in their homes between the rest of the family, knowing that their teenager has eaten at school. It is still only £25 per month to sponsor a young person. You could sponsor as an individual, a group of friends, a club or a business. We have new students at school waiting to be matched with a sponsor. Could this be you? Younger children, not yet at secondary school, who have a sponsor are given a monthly food parcel which helps to supplement the small amount of food they have at home. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
How about helping with feeding the children & young people at Christmas? We have already had one donation towards this. Would you like to ensure everyone has a great Christmas party with plenty of food? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
We have raised funds to plant fruit tree saplings & banana plants on Bright Futures Campus and at Chambo Primary School. These will provide future food and a source of income. However, as there are hundreds of children in need, we need to keep planting more. This is another project you could support with a donation.
Students at Bright Futures Secondary School are growing their own vegetables which they are able to eat as part of their school lunches. However, the vegetables don’t last as part of many meals, and far more need to be planted. We are raising funds to buy polytunnels to extend the growing season and the types of plants that can be grown. Is this a sustainable project you’d like to help with? you could donate via this link or email for bank details. https://donorsee.com/project/29095?share=1
We are supporting vulnerable people to set up Agribusiness Groups. Through hard work, small groups of people are able to grow crops and sell them and reinvest their money into their business. There are three groups already and we would like to set up another two groups. Again, you can give via this link https://donorsee.com/project/27241?share=1 or by emailing for bank details.
Those are eight ways we are working in partnership with the people we are supporting. It’s better than nothing. It’s better than it was. But it is still not enough. With your help, with your £5 or £10 or sponsorship of a young person, we can and will keep Changing Lives (in) Malawi.
So, on World Food Day, are you hungry? What are you having for your dinner? Can you spare a thought and a small amount of money for the hundreds of children living in extreme poverty for whom we are trying to support to have a brighter future? You can make a difference to a child that you don’t know and will never meet by supporting one of our projects. As we are volunteers, you know every penny goes to the projects you support.
This World Food Day, let’s share with those who need our help. Thank you, Sarah x
To sponsor a teenage girl please click here International Day of the Girl Child there are also a few boys waiting for support with their education.
Some of the younger children being fed at the weekly feeding programmeSome of the happy children at a Christmas PartyOne of the agribusiness groups working hard in their fieldChildren waiting in the rain to be fedPlanting bananas at Chambo Primary SchoolStudents at Bright Futures Secondary School planting sweet potato vines as part of their Agriculture lesson, providing them with education, food and skills for life.
Some great drawings from students before they will make their beehives soon.
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Sarah’s blog 13/10/25
As you may have seen, we post some fundraising projects on DonorSee to raise our profile in USA and, hopefully, get some more donations.
One of these projects was to start a bee keeping project at Bright Futures Secondary School. As well as students gaining knowledge and skills for life, the honey can be sold as an income and to help the school towards self-sufficiency.
Thanks to generous donors, the project was funded recently. Some of the students have been looking at beekeeping books and designed their own drawings of beehives.
Another DonorSee project that was recently funded was for more agricultural tools and carpentry tools for Bright Futures Secondary School. Thanks to those donors for their support.
The money has been sent, supplies will be bought and a carpenter will help the students to make some hives. Have a look at these photos and we will share more when the students are making their beehives.
Do have a look at our DonorSee projects and share with your network and make a small donation if you can please. Many thanks for all the support with the Beehives at Bright Futures project, Sarah x
Here are just some of the reasons why vulnerable girls in Malawi need our help today. You can also read about some of the success stories!
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Sarah’s blog 11/10/25
Whilst we are supporting both boys and girls of all ages, girls living in extreme poverty are still living in a very unequal world. International Day of the Girl Child highlights some of the inequalities they face and how we can support them.
Many of the young people we help to support are living with extended family or with one parent. In Malawi it is illegal to marry girls off when they are children. It still happens. Girls are at greater risk of dying during childbirth as well as missing out on their education.
We have matched several girls with sponsors whose families couldn’t afford to feed them. They thought it was better to give their eldest daughter away to get married at age 11 or 12 as they would get a dowry and therefore be able to feed the rest of their family. Having a sponsor means that these very vulnerable girls are still in school, receive a monthly food parcel (if at primary school) or free secondary education with free school lunches (if at Bright Futures Secondary School). The impact of education, food and having a sponsor is huge. We are highlighting these inequalities and the challenges girls face on International Day of the Girl Child, to draw attention to how difficult things are for these vulnerable girls.
If girls do not have access to sanitary towels, they are not welcome at school for one week every month whilst they have their period. Imagine the shame they must feel for having a normal bodily function. Since we sent some donated hand turn Singer sewing machines, girls have been making reusable sanitary towels which have been given out to all who need them. This gives girls and young women confidence, dignity and the same access to education as boys have.
In Chitipa District in the far north, where the community we are partnering with is situated, teenage pregnancies are very high. Thankfully, by being able to keep teenagers in education and giving them opportunities and having choices and chances they wouldn’t normally have had, at Bright Futures Secondary School there have only been two teenage pregnancies since the school opened. (the statistics are in the link below).
In the link to another blog below, you can see we celebrated with a party for Catherine, Emily and Naomi, passing their secondary school leavers exams and also the s3 students who had passed their junior certificates of education (s2 national exams). None of them would have had this opportunity if it wasn’t for them having sponsors to support their education. We are so grateful for each and everyone of our sponsors. Thank you!
We have girls in S1 who are each needing a sponsor to help support the cost of their education at Bright Futures Secondary School. This is a small school which was built specifically to meet the needs of the very vulnerable teenagers in the community who can’t pay for their secondary education at local state run schools. Sponsorship helps cover; free education, free school lunches, free uniform, shoes and other clothes, school bags & water bottles and free stationery.
We have managed to match two girls in S1 with sponsors but these girls are still waiting for your help. It is still only £25 per month to sponsor a young person. You can sponsor as an individual, a family, friends sharing the cost, or your church, school, club or business could be a sponsor. Will you give the gift of education and a brighter future today? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Imagine the difference 5 friends could make to a girl if they each paid £5 per month to support her education. Could this be you and your friends? Thanks to everyone who supports us through sponsorship and donations. Together, on International Day of the Girl Child, we can continue Changing Lives (in) Malawi, Sarah x
(I had a short video chat with the S1 class last week, thanks to their headteacher, and asked each of the students a couple of questions. I’ve written their replies under their photos. Sarah) contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Schollastica helps at home by sweeping the inside of her home and the surrounding area and enjoys playing netball with her friendsLusubiro’s favourite subject is biology and she loves playing rugbyEthel loves to read and so far at school is enjoying having school uniform and booksTusalifye is enjoying being at Bright Futures Secondary School and lives a short distance away. She helps at home by sweeping and fetching water. Veronica said she likes all the books at school and that they get a free school lunch each day. Her favourite sport is netball.Susan said she really likes school so far as the uniform, shoes, bag and lunches are all for free. Her favourite subject is maths.At home, Nellie helps with digging their small farmland and fetching water. She likes reading books and her favourite subject is geography.
Thanks so much to All Saints CofE School, Maidenhead and to the charity Sal’s Shoes for making a difference to these vulnerable teenagers.
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Sarah’s blog 8/10/25
When I was a teenager, I always loved going to choose new stationery ready for returning to school after the summer holidays and, most years, I’d get a new school bag and unform and shoes too…although I really disliked our brown school uniform! There was no question that, although there wasn’t lots of spare money, there was always enough to buy the things that my siblings and I needed.
The students that have just started in S1 at Bright Futures Secondary School are living in extreme poverty. Their families cannot afford enough food, let alone any money to buy school uniform, shoes and stationery. So, last week, they were overwhelmed when gifts were handed out to each of them. They’ve never had presents like this, that we and our children all take for granted.
Thanks to individual supporters, we were able to send new and preloved school uniform; shirts and blouses and skirts and trousers. I got in touch with a wonderful charity called Sal’s Shoes who have helped us out once before. They kindly agreed to give us shoes for the students at Bright Futures Secondary School. We (and the students) are so grateful for this support. Thank you for the wonderful work you do at Sal’s Shoes, collecting and sorting preloved outgrown shoes and sending them on to protect vulnerable children’s feet.
Also, All Saints C of E School, Maidenhead, had contacted us to see if we could use some uniform that they no longer needed as they had changed their school badge. Of course we said yes and were delighted with everything that they sent. The S1 students were delighted to receive their new back packs which they had no idea they would be getting. Thanks so much for these! The clothes from All Saints C of E School, Maidenhead, will be distributed over the next few weeks amongst other vulnerable children.
I had bought water bottles for the new students which I filled with; toothbrush & toothpaste, small bars of soap, pens, pencils, rulers, erasers and sharpeners. Each student was also given some exercise books. They were amazed as they’ve never had a day of receiving this many gifts all at once and certainly not lovely new presents like this. These donations will really help to motivate them to work hard. You can see in one of the photos, one of the girls is overcome with tears of happiness because she didn’t expect to receive all these lovely gifts.
There are two videos in which the S1 students are thanking Sal’s Shoes for their new shoes and also thanking All Saints School for their school bags. If you have donated school uniform, shoes, pencils etc…you can see where your donations are going and how much it means to the recipients. Thank you everyone.
We try to match each of these vulnerable students with a sponsor to help support financially with their education. As well as paying the teachers, part of the sponsorship money goes towards providing a substantial free school lunch each day. For most of these students, it is their only meal of the day and their families can share the small amount of food they have with the remaining family members. Many of these students are orphans, living with extended family. Many in the community have been affected by AIDS and HIV.
We still need to match the following students with sponsors; Veronica, Susan, Nellie, John, Wakisa, Lindwell, Schollastica, Robert, Brian, Lumbiro, Esther, Tusalifye and Ethel. That’s 13 vulnerable young people who need your help. There is an old saying ‘It takes a village to raise a child’…..can we be part of the ‘village’ for these teenagers who really need our support? It’s only £25 per month to sponsor a young person. You can sponsor as an individual, share the cost with a friend or sponsor a young person through your club or business. Get in touch to make a difference and give a student a brighter future contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Enjoy the photos and videos and I look forward to receiving your email if you’d like to give the gift of education to one of these students. Thank you, Sarah x
Students thanking the charity Sal’s Shoes for their new shoes
The S1 students are thanking All Saints School, Maidenhead, for their new school bags
Bright Futures Secondary School has another completed building. Thank you to Vets with Horsepower for their financial assistance..
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Sarah’s blog 24/09/25
Bright Futures Secondary School has another completed building. This year, as there are four years of students (and classroom four had been used as a staffroom) four new teachers have been employed in addition to the existing staff. A purpose built staffroom has just been completed and the name transferred to the new building. I think you will agree that the staffroom looks very smart.
Sadie Harmin is a little girl in America with a big smile whose grandmother & mother have been very supportive of our charity and of the projects we are helping. I have just sent Sadie’s grandmother a photo of the new staffroom and she is delighted with how it looks and with Sadie’s name written on the side.
The next building that we hope will be completed very soon, as the builders are working hard, is a two classroom block; one will be Bright Futures Nursery, and one will be an extra classroom for when extra room is needed/year group being split into two different lessons.
We are very grateful for the financial support we received last year from the charity Vets with Horsepower which made the building of this staffroom possible.
Hope you enjoy looking at these photos. There will be more from Bright Futures Secondary School in the next few days with new students looking for sponsors and school uniform and shoes being distributed. If you would like to support the education of a young person living in extreme poverty then please do get in touch. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com . Thanks, Sarah x
Please support the education of one of these students. All are living in extreme poverty and all want a brighter future through secondary education.
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Sarah’s blog 21/9/25
Levison and some of the teachers met with students today who want a place at Bright Futures Secondary School when the new term starts again tomorrow. Each young person has been interviewed to ensure that they are serious about their education and will work hard.
These are the young people who need a sponsor to help support their education. Everything is free at Bright Futures Secondary School for these students who are all living in extreme poverty, many of them are orphans living with extended family. As well as free education, these students will receive a free school lunch each day. This is, for most, their only food each day so it is vital that they receive a nutritious meal each lunchtime. The small amount of food in their homes can then be shared amongst the rest of the family.
Students also receive school uniform, underwear and shoes. They have school bags and water bottles and the stationery they need. Each student receives soap, toothbrush & toothpaste and a solar lamp to use at home as it gets dark year round at 6pm in Malawi.
Will you sponsor one of these young people please? Will you give them a brighter future with choices and chances that they wouldn’t otherwise have had? Will you help change the life of a teenager through education? It is only £25 per month to sponsor a young person. You can do this as an individual, a family, friends sharing the cost, a club or a business. Anyone can be a sponsor. Will you help? It might be the most important gift anyone can give to one of these teenagers. Which young person would you like to give the gift of education to today? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
Levison said they had put their best clothes on to come and see him today. Many of those clothes had been gifted to them from the boxes we send. But look at Lidiwero’s shoes. They are too small for him and starting to fall apart. He will receive new shoes this week. Ethel, you might notice, has been affected by malnutrition when she was younger and her growth has been stunted. Yet despite the challenges they face, these young people are determined that they want to have an education and have a brighter and better future.
Will you help one of them today please? The more students that we can match with sponsors, the more students can attend Bright Futures Secondary School. Together we can continue Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thank you for caring. Sarah x
It’s great to hear from someone new asking if you would like sports kit. Paul, who is connected with Lichfield Spires Netball Club had contacted me a few months ago. He said they were getting new kit and would we want to send their preloved kit to Malawi. I said YES PLEASE!
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Sarah’s blog 20/9/25
It’s great to hear from someone new asking if you would like sports kit. Paul, who is connected with Lichfield Spires Netball Club had contacted me a few months ago. He said they were getting new kit and would we want to send their preloved kit to Malawi. I said YES PLEASE!
Netball is one of the national sports in Malawi and, so far, all we have managed to send is some netball bibs. We’ve sent plenty of football and rugby kit but have been very aware that the netball teams hadn’t had as much attention. Until now. Paul explained that their club has several teams, spanning different age groups so we would be receiving kit in children’s and in adult sizes.
What has been so helpful is that some members of the club donated money to help send the kit to Malawi. Often we have people who are keen to donate items to us but then we are left having to fundraise to cover the cost of sending boxes on the container. It costs £17.50 per box to cover the cost of the container which is organised by a charity in Dundee, The Bananabox Trust. We are very grateful for all the hard work from their volunteers with receiving and labelling boxes and packing the container which is used by lots of organisations sending aid to Malawi.
Today shows how much people care about making a difference to the vulnerable children we help to support. The town of Lichfield is approximately 300 miles from where we live. Paul very kindly offered to meet my husband, Stuart, halfway. So this morning, Paul and Stuart met up in a carpark in Penrith and Paul handed the boxes of netball kit to Stuart. That is such an act of kindness. Both men will have had other things they could have prioritised today but they ensured that these kits were handed over to be reused. Thank you both.
This netball kit is going to be an amazing gift to the young people in rural northern Malawi. Until a few years ago, when we (and others who support us) started sending sports kit to Malawi, there was no matching sports kit. The children and young people love team sports. They love being able to forget about the traumas they have in their lives. They love the sense of belonging. They love being with their friends. And they love having smart, matching sports kit which they wear with a sense of pride.
Having matching kit is a real boost to their self-esteem. People in a different country have cared enough about them to want to make their lives a little bit better. Kindness matters. These children and young people, all of whom live in extreme poverty, most of whom are orphans living with extended family, are no longer ignored and side-lined. They know that they matter and they want a brighter future for themselves through education and learning new skills.
So this is a big thank you to Paul for organising all the netball kit collection and for bringing it halfway today to hand it over to Stuart. We are very grateful. Also to everyone who donated kit and those who have helped towards shipping costs, thanks so much. Stuart, what would we do without you? You do so much for the charity and ensuring everything gets boxed up properly for the long journey to Malawi. Thank you, Stuart.
Please sign up to receive my blogs so you’ll see when the netball kit arrives, and follow us on social media for lots of photos. Please do tell your friends too.
I’m adding the QR code to this post in case anyone does want to make a small donation. I need to buy some netballs to send with the kit. If you’ve liked reading this post and want to help then a donation of £5 would be really helpful. Or you can donate via the page on our website too.
Hope you enjoy these photos and hopefully, in a few months time, there will be happy photos from netball teams wearing their Lichfield Spires Netball Kit with pride. Thanks again everyone, Sarah x
ps I’ve attached the link to International Literacy Day if you’ve not managed to read about our School Literacy Project – we are very proud of the young people we are helping to support. Sarah x
Paul from Lichfield Spires Netball Club with one of their club topsPaul (left) and Stuart with one of the shirts from Lichfield Spires Netball Clubapprox 300 miles between Balfron and Lichfield…we were very grateful that Paul offered to meet Stuart at Penrith.Here is our QR code where you can make a donation to one of several projects.
Having a sponsor is making a huge difference to some of the most vulnerable children and young people we help to support. All of them are living in extreme poverty. All are hungry. Many are malnourished. Many are orphans living with extended family.
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Sarah’s blog 11/9/25
Having a sponsor is making a huge difference to some of the most vulnerable children and young people we help to support. All of them are living in extreme poverty. All are hungry. Many are malnourished. Many are orphans living with extended family.
One way that sponsors are changing the lives of children is that the younger ones (those not at secondary school) receive a monthly food parcel/care package. As you can see in these photos, as well as maize, they have each received a bottle of cooking oil and two bars of soap.
Usually, students at Bright Futures Secondary School don’t receive this monthly parcel, as they receive a free school lunch each day instead. This, for most, is their only meal each day so it is vitally important that free lunch is supplied as well as free education. The small amount of food that the family has at home can be shared amongst other family members as they know the student has had a nutritious lunch. As it is school holidays, the sponsored students at Bright Futures Secondary School have received a food parcel instead of school lunches.
There were some children and young people who didn’t attend to receive their parcel but it has been kept for them and, hopefully, we will have photos of the remaining sponsored children and young people within the next couple of weeks. As it is school holidays, some have gone to stay with relatives slightly further away, others are working in the fields to try to bring in a tiny income for their families to use to buy food.
Life is really hard for them all as there are no big charities feeding children in primary schools in the far north of Malawi. We can only afford to support a feeding programme once a week whilst sustainable projects are being set up to help the community be self-sufficient. However, everyone can see that life is much better than it was. Having a sponsor for the most vulnerable is giving them hope of a brighter future.
Secondary School needs to be paid for in Malawi and none of the young people we help to support could afford to pay school fees. They can attend Bright Futures Secondary School free of charge if we can match them with a sponsor to help us with the cost of their secondary education and school lunches.
Will you please sponsor a vulnerable young person who is waiting for a place at Bright Futures Secondary School? It’s only £25 per month and you can sponsor as an individual, friends or family or your business can sponsor a young person. Email if you’d like to help contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com .
I’d just like to take a moment to apologise that there haven’t been more updates on sponsored children & young people recently. The last 18 months had been really difficult for me with caring responsibilities and therefore I haven’t been able to dedicate as much time as I would have liked. However, I am now catching up with everything and aim to get more information and updates to sponsors more often.
Our sponsored children section on our website also needs updating and is on the list of jobs to do. Every child or young person who is matched with a sponsor will have their own page on our website that I will update with information and photos regularly and sponsors will be able to click on the link for their child or young person.
So here are the first photos of children & young people looking so much healthier and happier thanks to support of their sponsors. Many thanks as we couldn’t do what we do without your help. Together we are Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thanks for being so supportive, Sarah x
It’s International Literacy Day today! We are celebrating all the amazing children and young people we are helping to support through literacy in rural northern Malawi.
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Sarah’s blog 8/9/25
“Literacy is a bridge from misery to hope.” Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General
“The only thing that you absolutely have to know, is the location of the library.” Albert Einstein
“Reading is the gateway for children that makes all other learning possible.” Barack Obama
On International Literacy Day, we want to share some of the ways we, with the help of our supporters, are making a difference to literacy levels in rural northern Malawi.
1.School Literacy Project. How can children learn to read properly if they don’t have books to practice? So far, we have gifted 20 boxes of books to Chambo Primary School and Kalanga Primary School, both of which are in Chitipa District in the far north of Malawi. Most schools do not have enough resources, children do not have the notebooks and pencils that they need. Occasionally, we can provide a notebook and pencil for the oldest children at these primary schools, thanks to money raised from our supporters. Despite having so much stacked against them, since preloved books have been donated to these schools, the p8 exam pass rate has gone up almost 20% to 78% which is amazing! We hope to keep going with this project as it is proving to be such a success. This is a low cost project with a huge impact. The preloved books are donated, but what we do have to pay for is £17.50 per box of books on the container ship to Malawi. We need your help to support this project so that we can include other schools in our School Literacy Project. You can make a donation via the website, or our QR code or email me for bank details contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
2. Emma’s Rainbow Library was built in memory of Emma Buchanan who lived in Balfron (where we are based). Emma loved being read to whilst she was ill and her family helped raise funds towards this library. There are story books for all ages, reference books, school books and a couple of computers in the library which is a fantastic resource for all the children and young people in the surrounding area. Children are learning to love books and spend quiet time reading for pleasure here. Yesterday, I attended an event by the first ever Balfron Book Festival. I had a stall where people could donate their preloved books and I was able to tell lots of people about the impact their donations are having on literacy levels.
3. Bright Futures Nursery Care Packages. The nursery was opened as pre-schoolers were hanging about with nowhere to go. They are fed at each session. Each child that starts nursery receives a bag containing; two red t-shirts, three pairs of underwear, soap, toothpaste & toothbrush, a blanket, a soft toy and two picture story books. We want every home to have at least two books that the family can share together. When the nursery children first saw the books that we were sending, they didn’t know what to do with them and didn’t know how to turn the pages on a book. Now they look forward to a story! The school teachers at Chambo Primary have said that there is a noticeable difference in the children’s literacy when they start school to those who have not attended nursery. We need your support for this important project to continue please. It costs £10 per child to receive a care package to support their wellbeing and their literacy. We would love your help.
4. Bright Futures Secondary School. There weren’t enough places for some of the young people we help to support in the nearest secondary schools and secondary schools aren’t free in Malawi. So, again thanks to our supporters, we raised funds to build a small secondary school. All the students are living in extreme poverty, most are orphans, and we match them sponsors to help support their education. Everything is free to these students; education, school uniform, stationery and they receive a free school lunch each day which, for many of them, is the only food they have to eat. The whole S2 class all passed their national Junior Certificate of Education exams which was a great achievement! The more sponsors we have, the more students can attend Bright Futures Secondary School. We ask for £25 per month per student. You can sponsor as an individual, friends, or family splitting the monthly cost. We even have a few businesses sponsoring young people. If you would like to help a young person have a brighter future please do get in touch contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com
As you can see there is a great deal happening to support literacy in the community we are helping to support in rural northern Malawi. But there is still a lot more to do. We need financial support to keep the above projects going so that young people have choices, chances and opportunities that they wouldn’t previously have had. They are desperate for education and want to learn. Will you help please?
We are hoping to collect and send board books to distribute to the new mum’s at Chambo Health Centre as part of our Mother & Baby project so that babies can have access to books with their parents and looking at picture books will become an everyday activity before they even get to nursery and school.
Also there are plans for adult literacy classes which we hope will be able to start soon as a trial. There are so many adults who have missed out on education because they have had to work from an early age to help provide food for their family. Let’s see if we can continue, with your help, Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thank you so much for your support, Sarah x
Our QR code where you can make a donation to support our School Literacy Project or one of the other projects. Thank you!The S2 students at Bright Futures Secondary School all received new uniform and stationery before sitting their national exams. We are so proud as all of them passed! If you would like to sponsor a young person’s education then please do get in touch. The more sponsors we have then the more students can go to school!Children in one of the classrooms at Kalanga Primary School looking at some of the books that they have been gifted as part of our School Literacy Projectsome of the nursery children, outside the library, showing off the bars of soap they have receivednursery children with their care packagesBoxes of books gifted to Chambo Primary Schoollearning about digital literacy in Emma’s Rainbow LibraryBible Knowledge is a core subject at schools in Malawi. We received a donation of preloved bibles from a church in Edinburgh and were able to send these to students at Bright Futures Secondary School. The majority of lessons are in English with Chichewa also being a core subject in schools.One of the children from Bright Futures Nursery with his care packagePlease support literacy in rural northern Malawi. Thank you!
Our grateful thanks to Andy Bottomer form Community Sports Leaders Africa for leading this cricket camp at Bright Futures Campus. Another new sport and a huge amount of fun!
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Sarah’s blog 25/8/25
Another first for the vulnerable children and young people we help to support in rural Chitipa District. Last week some of them learned to play cricket for the first time! It looked like they all had a great time as they love playing team sports. Also, they enjoy people coming to spend time with them and teaching them. Until a few years ago, these children had felt invisible and had no hope of a brighter future.
One of our friends, Andrew Bottomer, whose organisation is ‘Community Sports Leaders Africa’ has been in Malawi this summer. He and his supporters had collected lots of sports equipment for the various activity sessions he planned to coach.
We were delighted when Andy asked if he could visit Bright Futures Campus and teach some of the adults and young people how to play cricket. Of course, the young people were delighted that someone new was coming to visit and they would be learning a new team sport!
Levison and team enjoyed Andy’s visit and looked after him during the couple of days he was there and Andy was amazed at how Bright Futures Secondary School is growing so much. Hopefully, Andy will return again during his next trip. He will be very welcome and has made lots of new friends. Thank you so much, Andy, for sharing your time and talents and for introducing cricket at Bright Futures Campus! Thank you also to the teachers who took part and were able to send these great photos and videos. Hope you all enjoy a snapshot of the cricket camp, Sarah x
