On Friday, Physics teacher Mr Hills and Sabrina in Upper VI were guests on BBC Radio Berkshire as The Abbey’s Refugee Homework Club was officially announced as a finalist in the BBC Make a Difference Awards!
The club has been shortlisted in the Community Group Award, which celebrates groups who go above and beyond to create meaningful change for members of their local community.
The Refugee Homework Club was set up fifteen years ago and is currently run by Mr Hills in conjunction with the Reading Refugee Support Group.
Speaking to BBC Radio Berkshire’s breakfast show host, Rich Clarke, Mr Hills proudly shared that, “The main satisfaction I get is from seeing the children and their parents benefiting so much from the work that our students do. We have sixth form students volunteering after school to help the children, and the transformation in the children is amazing”.
Genuine transformation and support are at the heart of the club’s mission. Mr Hills spoke of the various ways in which members of the club have experienced tangible, positive change. Mr Hills told BBC Radio, “The children make amazing progress and move up from set three to set one in their local schools very quickly. The parents are also transformed in various ways, from being offered help with filling out forms to contacting GPs, and one parent is now training to be a translator”.
Sabrina joined the club as a volunteer a year ago and added that it is “an amazing way to help children who need that extra support at school” and brings “a bit of happiness” into their lives. She went on to state the positive impact the award nomination has had on the Reading Refugee Support Group, giving them ‘recognition’ for all the pivotal work they do.
Sabrina reflected on her experience of being on air: ‘It was a great experience to talk about the work we do and share how much it means to us. I was very excited and slightly nervous before going on air, but once I started speaking, I really enjoyed the experience. Being on BBC Radio was something I never expected to do, and I felt very proud to represent our club and school. It was amazing to be able to highlight the positive difference we are making in our community!’.
The Abbey’s Sixth Form volunteers also got well-deserved praise from Mr Hills, who highlighted how vital the students are to keeping the club running: “Our wonderful students help, and I’m always inundated by the number who want to help. They’re so keen”.
The winners of the award will be announced on Thursday 24 September, and The Abbey will be hosting a celebration on Tuesday 29 September to celebrate all the incredible work the club has been doing over the past fifteen years.