Swap It

On Saturday, young fundraisers Evie, Isla and Liv held their fantastic “Swap It” event as part of Outwood Academy’s Out There programme.

The Out There programme encourages students to step outside the classroom and make a positive difference in their local community. As part of the challenge, students are supported to identify something they care about, develop their own volunteering idea and then put it into action. It’s a brilliant opportunity for young people to build confidence, develop new skills and see the difference they can make.

Evie, Isla and Liv chose to support Ripon Walled Garden, having all previously volunteered with us and seen first-hand the work that we do.

Their Swap It event was a wonderful way to combine fundraising with sustainability, encouraging people to give their unwanted clothes a new lease of life by donating or swapping them, rather than sending them to landfill.

Over the past few weeks, the girls, along with their families, have worked incredibly hard collecting clothing donations. They then transformed them into an amazing display for Saturday’s event – and what a fantastic selection they had! Everyone had been incredibly generous with their donations.

We were also delighted to welcome the Mayor and Mayoress of Ripon, who came along to show their support and congratulate the girls on their hard work, creativity and initiative.

An amazing £230 was raised on the day, which is fantastic. But that’s not the end as many of the lovely clothes that were left will now be sold through other outlets, bringing in even more valuable funds for Ripon Walled Garden.

A huge thank you to Evie, Isla and Liv and their families for all their hard work, enthusiasm and commitment. We’re incredibly proud that they chose to support us and have loved seeing their idea come to life.

What a brilliant example of young people getting Out There and making a positive difference in their community.