Plymouth school raises over £6,000 for South Western Ambulance Charity

Students from OneSchool Global Plymouth have raised £6,088.59 for South Western Ambulance Charity while taking part in a sponsored triathlon fundraising event.

The OSG Plymouth ‘Triathlon for Life’ event took place across two weeks and saw students walk, run, or cycle as far as they could within their local area, covering a collective distance of over 1,450 miles – the equivalent distance of Plymouth to John O’Groats and back again.

South Western Ambulance Charity was chosen by the students in recognition of the vital work which this local organisation has done throughout the pandemic, from supporting key workers to helping slow down the spread of Covid-19.

The charity was founded in 1995 to benefit those in the local community who use the service and to improve the welfare of the staff and volunteers of the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust. The charitable support covers Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire including Bristol and Swindon.

As well as wanting to support a charity in the community, the students were also keen to encourage one another to be active through the lockdown period. Thanks to the efforts of nearly all 95 students at the school, each one covering an average of 15 miles per person, the school beat its fundraising target of £4,000 by over £2,000, providing essential funding for the South West Ambulance Charity’s work.

Charlton Ellis, OneSchool Global Plymouth Student Leader, said: “The uptake of this charity fundraiser has been absolutely fantastic. As the campaign gathered momentum, so did the giving, and before long we had smashed our initial target of £4,000. It is thanks to every student and sponsor that participated that we are able to give this donation to the South Western Ambulance Charity.”

Christopher O’Reilly, Campus Principal for OneSchool Plymouth UK, said: “It is truly inspiring to see our students seize the initiative like this to do something selfless for charity. I have been blown away by the time and effort which the students put in to take part, and it is wonderful to see this reflected in the money raised. 

“At OneSchool Global, we are guided by our values of care and compassion which we seek to instil in our pupils, teaching them the importance of being good neighbours, and giving back to the local community. Thank you again to our students and their generous sponsors – many of whom are from the network of businesses in our school community.”

Zoe Larter, Head of Charity at the South West Ambulance Service, said:  “We are so impressed with all the students who took part in this event and they should be really proud of themselves.  This has been an unusual year for schools, so it is great to see that the students from OneSchool Global Plymouth have found a way to stay active and healthy while also putting their efforts towards helping others. The money raised during this event will enable us to continue supporting our excellent ambulance service and volunteers.”