HSA initiative donates more than 3,500 books to charities and schools
A major book donation initiative at Woodham Rise has achieved an extraordinary result, with every single surplus book finding a new home and zero books going to waste.
The initiative was led by HSA parent, Shraddha Dutch, together with parent volunteers, Jo and Lisa, the team cleared hundreds of books from classrooms across the Woodham Rise site, as well as the former Halstead library. The books were carefully sorted by age group before being distributed to a range of charities and educational organisations in the UK and overseas.
Approximately 1,000 books have been donated to ABC Books, a charity dedicated to creating libraries in schools that do not have them.
A further 500 Pre-Prep books have been gifted to local nurseries through connections within the school community, including a parent who owns nurseries and a contact from Boz Fruit & Veg in Horsell Village.
Another 100 books have been donated to the Book Bank, which operates as part of the local food bank network, helping to make reading materials more accessible to families in need.
The largest donation of all will see more than 2,000 books, including phonics resources, shipped to Kenya to help establish school libraries. The project is being facilitated by Mr Bhogaita, grandfather of pupils Harvey and Dylan.
The initiative means that 100% of the school's excess books have been redistributed to support children and communities both locally and internationally.
Mrs Dylan said: "The project will inspire hundreds of children to discover the joy of reading, while also ensuring that valuable educational resources continue to be used where they are needed most."
"Special thanks to Jonjo, Jordan and Justin [HSA facilities team] for their support in providing access and assistance throughout the sorting and packing process. The final stage of the project involves boxing and shipping the books destined for Kenya, with further updates expected in the coming months."