For around a decade Gateways School in Harewood has been supporting the Leeds Rotary Club’s Aquabox Appeal and this year, the school filled ten boxes with humanitarian items to be sent to disaster areas around the world.
Each box – a 75 litre plastic container – can be used to purify up to 1,100 litres of polluted water, which is enough to supply a family of four for up to four months. After a natural disaster, a lack of clean water is one of the major problems facing affected communities, so the Aquabox is a vital lifeline.
Rather than send the boxes overseas empty they are filled with essential items – ranging from a toothbrush to clothes pegs to a child’s toy and tools such as hammers and nails – needed by families to reconstruct their homes and lives. The whole school pulled together to collect items for ten boxes which were collected just before the Easter break. The boxes will be sent to the Philippines to aid families affected by the recent typhoon.
Jane Foster, Head of Community Outreach at Gateways School who co-ordinated the appeal, said: We are delighted with the response we have had from the whole school community in supporting the Aquabox scheme again this year – it provides essential help to families in desperate need.
