On Friday, 28 September the entire school community from the youngest child in Prep I to the oldest in Form VI united in a Sponsored Walk with one purpose in mind: to raise money for those in need.  Over 1200 pupils trudged up to twelve miles under a glowering grey sky over the Ochils to a lunch field in Glendevon and back again.

An early estimate puts the amount pledged at £45,662.21. This year the beneficiaries are:

• Sight Savers International – combatting blindness in developing countries
• Nutrir – supporting food and education programmes globally
• Depression Alliance UK – information and support for depression sufferers
• Brainwave – for children with brain injuries or developmental delay
• Rachel House – the children’s hospice in Kinross
• The Friends of the Beatson – cancer care in the west of Scotland

But the charities were not the only beneficiaries. Many staff and pupils took on responsibilities in the event serving in jobs as diverse as first aiders, communications support, marshals, sweepers and pipers. The pupils and staff involved enjoyed a huge sense of accomplishment and they learned important lessons about the importance of helping others.

The process leading up to this event inspired many conversations between young people and their teachers, young people and their parents and young people and members of their communities. From the Prep I pupil who learned the meaning of the word ‘hospice’ to the Senior pupil who explained to potential sponsors about the work of Sight Savers International in Africa, the sponsored walk provides an opportunity to learn about the wider world and its needs.

As pupils neared the final check point on the day, some ran in a competitive bid to be first and some limped with sodden socks and shoes caked in mud, but when asked what the best thing about the sponsored walk was an overwhelming majority concluded that it was the raising money for charity that inspired them.