Three Peaks Challenge
I have just completed the Three Peaks Challenge, walking 26 miles in 11 hours and 15 minutes as I want to raise funds and awareness to ensure that every child is able to go to school. It was an amazing experience and I enjoyed the company of my fellow workers on that blustery Saturday. I got off lightly with only one blister so I think that is good news to share and my feet are resting nicely now.
When I was walking the Three Peaks with my team mates I was thinking of all the children who have not been able to learn during COVID19 as they do not have access to the internet. There are many millions of children during normal times who are not able to go to school, because of war, natural disaster, displacement and poverty.
Did you know that around 463m pupils have no access to online schooling and did not have access to education before the COVID19 pandemic?
If you haven’t already supported me, there is still time to support this important cause and make a difference to childrens lives: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/funda-sinan
There is still time to support #EducationForAll. Please support me to make a difference to children's lives.
I believe that It is so important that every child should be able to access a quality education. The Steve Sinnott Foundation has been doing amazing work during COVID19 to ensure that some of the most disadvantaged children can continue learning safely.
These are the projects that you will be supporting https://www.stevesinnottfoundation.org.uk/projects
Thank you for your support so far, you have raised £395 together and you have all been amazing.
Funda Sinan
Perhaps you have an idea for a fundraiser yourself?
If you are looking for inspiration have a look at the Fundraising Ideas
here: https://www.stevesinnottfoundation.org.uk/fundraising

Funda Sinan • September 21, 2020

This week while out and about in Hertfordshire and we visited the British Schools Museum. We discovered the first school opened by Joseph Lancaster, was known as the ‘Poor Childs Friend”, was in 1810. It was his lifelong mission that all children regardless of their circumstances, should benefit from an education. Apparently, Joseph heard a small girl say, “Oh that I could read!” and this inspired him to create a simple education system that eventually would benefit children across the world. Joseph was the tenth son of a poor man himself from South London. His aim was to offer free education for everyone. However, it would be 93 years before the U.K. government finally made education free for all. There are still many countries today where education is still not free to access and it is certainly not compulsory for primary and secondary age pupils. Joseph’s mission really resonates with that of the Foundation, to support access to education for all. We enjoyed our visit and appreciated the tour given by two of the Museum’s volunteers, Angela and Clare. They described some of the challenges faced in the early years of formal education and shared some of the rules that teachers and students had to abide by with us.

Sparks Bristol is a collaborative community project initially envisioned by The Global Goals Centre, (GGC) more of which below. A few years ago, GGC took over an empty Marks and Spencer store and that’s how Sparks was born. Sparks is a department store with a difference, co-created by Global Goals Centre and Artspace Lifespace. On the ground floor is a huge range of shops, installations, events and more. Upstairs is a hub for local artists, it offers affordable studios as well as rehearsal and performance space. The Global Goals Centre is a Bristol-based educational charity inspired by the Sustainable Development Goals. (SDGs). GGC believe the SDG’s or Global Goals as they are sometimes known, can be reached, with imaginative solutions and widespread education and engagement. They work with partners to promote creative solutions and deliver ground breaking projects that work towards these ambitious goals. The Steve Sinnott Foundation supported the Global Goals Centre with seed funding when it first started over 5 years ago. This month we went to visit them to see how they are getting on and we were taken aback by the volume of work they have achieved since they started. It is amazing to see how though working together with other local community groups it has grown into the vibrant centre it is today. All of the creative projects they host are linked to the SDGs. They cover topics that tackle poverty, education, climate change, fashion recycling and upcycling, to name a few.

Spring is definitely here, daffodils, blossom and crocuses are all basking in the bright sunshine. There is still a chill in the air in the shade but it's happening and all the seeds that were sown over the last few months are coming to fruition. At the Foundation, we have been planning the year ahead and our Positive Periods and Prevention of Gender Based Violence programmes got underway this weekend in Haiti and Ghana. These projects will have a long-lasting effect on the lives of the women and girls who take part: tackling the root causes of gender-based violence and enabling girls to attend school every day when they have their period, to feel safe at school and know how to take action when they are faced with violence. These are the first of many projects planned for the year ahead as we continue to work towards Education for All children everywhere.