Sewing lessons at Bright Futures Secondary School are giving vulnerable students skills for life and giving back to the community.
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Sarah’s blog 26/2/26
Students have been busy in their Sewing Classes at Bright Futures Secondary School. To start with, they are helping with the Period Poverty Project. We are very proud of their efforts.
Girls miss one week of schooling every month because they do not have any sanitary pads and therefore have to stay at home. This is wrong that girls cannot access education because of a natural bodily function. We are helping to ensure that as many girls as possible can benefit from the gift of reusable sanitary pads. Will you help us?
Students, both male and female, have been learning to sew. They have been improving their hand sewing skills and using the sewing machines that we sent. They have been making bags and sanitary pads. These students are ensuring that girls will have equal access to education. Why should girls miss out on their education?
The Period Poverty Project aims to give out a bag containing ; underwear, reusable sanitary pads, soap and a health information leaflet. Through the sewing classes at Bright Futures Secondary School, students are giving back to their community. Students are also learning important skills for their futures.
Once enough supplies have been made for the local girls, students will move on to making something of their choice. I wonder what they will decide to make next? The Period Poverty Project sewing can be revisited again when the next group of students start sewing classes at Bright Futures Secondary School.
To get in touch with us our email is contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com . If you like the projects we are supporting and want to contribute financially, you can donate via our website or to our charity bank account – A/C no 21081462, Sort Code 80-22-60, Changing Lives Malawi, Bank of Scotland. The Period Poverty Project is an ongoing project, so more fabric and soap will need to be bought. The more supplies that can be made, the more girls that can be supported.
Thanks to teachers at Bright Futures Secondary School for supporting the students to learn new skills and for sending these photos. Thanks also to everyone who supports the students and projects like this. Together, we can continue Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thanks, Sarah x
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.
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.
For today, 10th December, we are highlighting the Period Poverty Project.
We sent some hand turn sewing machines to Malawi and some of the older girls have been learning to use them. A group of girls made reusable sanitary towels for all the girls who needed them. Each girl was given a bag containing new pants, reusable sanitary towels, soap and a health information leaflet. This project is ongoing and it would be really good, if funds allowed, that this project could reach more girls in other schools.
This is a project that hasn’t cost a lot of money but has made a big impact. Prior to the girls having reusable sanitary towels, they all used to miss one week of school each month and stay at home. There is nothing shameful about menstruation and girls should not have to miss out on one week of education every month. Now, thanks to the Period Poverty Project, girls’ are at school for the same amount of time as the boys and they have the same opportunity to learn and do just as well in their exams. There is no reason why girls shouldn’t reach their potential and it is good to know that this project is making a difference.
Levison sent these photos yesterday of some of the young people in one of their sewing classes. We had sent Singer hand turn sewing machines and they are being put to good use.
The Period Poverty Project has been running for a while now, helping give teenage girls dignity, confidence and equality. No longer do they have to miss a week of school each month to hide at home in shame. Drawstring bags have been made by a few girls. Each girl who needs one is gifted a bag with 5 reusable sanitary towels (also made by the girls), 3 pairs of pants, soap and a health information leaflet.
A fairly cheap to run project that makes a big difference to girls. If we had more money to send to this project then they could gift these bags in local schools to all girls who need them. Also local women would benefit from the gift of reusable sanitary towels and soap. I wondered if anyone would like to sponsor this project to gift £10 a month to keep this project running and extend it into the community? If we had a few people willing to gift £10 a month then this will make a big difference to hundreds of girls and women living in poverty. Why should they have to miss one week of education each month? Why should they have to stay at home and feel shame because of a normal bodily function?
There are various life skills classes being run at The Foundation. These young people are learning to sew and hopefully to make clothes. One of the older girls has managed to make a couple of school dresses for the younger children. Again, if we had more money to send, this would be amazing if school uniforms could be made for the children whom The Foundation supports but also then as a source of income for other families to buy school uniforms from The Foundation Sewing Shop. So if anyone feels they would like to support this project with a monthly donation, please get in touch, or maybe you’d like to donate some money to buy material? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com .
We want this community to be self-sufficient. We want them to have jobs to provide for themselves and their families. This is their wish too. They are a proud, hard-working community. They just need a helping hand out of the dire situation they have found themselves in through no fault of their own. Let’s help them get back on their feet and provide a sustainable future for them and their families. Thanks for reading, Sarah x
Melise is wearing a school dress that has been made for her by some of the older girls at The Foundation. They’ve done a great job. Melise has been allowed to start school a bit earlier as she is learing quickly. I wonder whether the books that have been given to her brother (Mwiza), who is disabled and doesn’t attend school, have helped with her learning.
