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201712 Pupils 3

NEWS

New Playground, Cricket Fundraising, and Community Health Initiatives

December 2024

Welcome to the Hannah Memorial Academy’s end of year newsletter for 2024. We thank you for your continued support over the past twelve months and we wish our supporters all the best this holiday season and a Happy New Year for 2025.

New playground surface installed

Earlier this year, a new hard standing playground surface was put down at the front of the school. The new surface will enable the children to participate in outdoor sporting activities all-year-round. Prior to this, the playground was covered with grass that would often become unplayable during heavy rainfall. The children are delighted with the new playground area and use it to practice a range of sports such as football and cricket. Charity funds raised from the London marathon efforts of Ben Pattie and Johannes Nijober were put towards this project. Additional improvements were also made to the children’s indoor playroom.

Southampton cricket team raises money with special match

Ampfield & North Baddesley Cricket Club, a cricket club in Southampton raised over £1700 for the Hannah Memorial Academy following a fundraiser 20/20 overs match. Players, friends and family came together for the special T20 match and BBQ in September. The match also marked the merger of Ampfield & North Baddesley Cricket Club with neighbouring club, the Southampton Travellers. As the two clubs are local to where Hannah Foster grew up, the both teams have been big supporters of the Hannah Memorial Academy over the years and we are very thankful for this significant donation.

Further funding has been generously donated through the Will of Mike Hadwin who was Hannah’s Geology teacher at her college. He wanted to show his high regard for her by helping disadvantaged children to obtain an education in her name at Hannah Memorial Academy.

Further improvements made to the school in 2024

Funds from the charity have also been put towards providing vital services and equipment for Hannah Memorial Academy students. The charity recently purchased a vehicle that will be used to transport some children to and from their homes to the school. Additional funds have been put towards buying new computers, student uniforms and maintaining the solar panels. We’ve also been able to continue our support for 37 former Hannah Memorial Academy students as they progress through secondary education. This includes paying for school fees and essential books.

Pupil and local community update

There is currently a steady intake of children at the school, with a mixture of students aged between 2-11 years old. The children are supported by a group of teachers who are implementing a standardised Indian primary school curriculum and some English language skills. 2024 continued to present a challenging economic climate for the Darjeeling region, especially for many tea gardens. Despite this, the school continues to be a hub of activity for the community. Every six weeks, the Hannah Memorial Academy buildings open as a local Health Centre, providing polio drops, contraceptives and other vital medicines approved for use by the local government.

So, very many thanks to you all and we wish you a Happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year.

If you are looking to make a donation this festive season, please visit our website to find out more about the different ways you can make a contribution to our cause. Thank you for your generosity.

The Trustees of the Hannah Memorial Academy Charitable Trust are - Christine Browning, Roger MacLaverty, John Higham, Ben Pattie, Ram Varma, Helen Wilde, and Camilla MacLaverty. We hope you are happy to receive occasional news about the progress of the school, but if you would prefer not to receive our newsletters, please email us at admin@hannahmemorialacademy.org to unsubscribe and if you would like to help us with a donation, no matter how small, then please visit this page of our website

Hannah Memorial Academy
32, Thames Haven
Portsmouth Road
Surbiton
KT6 4JA

Email: admin@hannahmemorialacademy.org
Web: www.hannahmemorialacademy.org
Tel: 020 8339 9200
Regn No. 112544

Support us now

Hannah’s school has united people of every age, from two continents, who want to help create a memorial for Hannah and benefit a whole community in one of the poorest areas of India – please join us in supporting Hannah’s school.

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Jason’s story

How the school was started

The Hannah Memorial Academy is the vision of Jason Lepcha who was inspired to build a school in memory of Hannah Foster.
The school, in the Dhooteriah Tea Garden, is a lasting legacy to Hannah Foster, a 17-year old Hampshire girl who was murdered in the West End District of Southampton in March 2003 by Maninder Pal Singh Kohli.

Just over a year after Hannah’s tragic death, Jason Lepcha, a local taxi driver with a good understanding of English, was hired as a driver in Darjeeling by the chief murder suspect. He subsequently responded to a national appeal for information that led to the arrest of Mr. Kohli in Darjeeling in July 2004. In return for providing the police with the vital information, Jason received a reward of £4569 from the Hampshire Police.

Jason is an educated man from a modest background but he always had a dream to provide free education for the children in the Dhooteriah Tea Garden, one of the country’s poorest regions. Instead of spending the reward on himself, Jason used the money and help from the local villagers to secure a plot of land suitable to build a school on.
In 2005 Jason’s vision became a reality, with the opening of an English school in the Dhooteriah Tea Garden. The school is situated in the village of Santi Gram, 21 km from Darjeeling town, in the foothills of the Himalayas.

Today, Jason and his wife Isabella manage and administer the school under an Indian trust, with the support of 7 local Trustees. Most importantly, the school is named after Hannah and serves as living memory to her while helping the regions children to get a good start in life.

Jason pupil and pony Jason looking at progress Darjeeling 4650 Jasons pony

Christine and Roger’s story

How the trust was formed.

In November 2006 Christine and Roger had been travelling in Darjeeling, when their driver, Jason told them about his school. One day they visited it and immediately decided they would like to support such a wonderful, practical memorial.

They came home to Hampton and with the full support of Trevor and Hilary Foster, Hannah’s parents, started collecting funds. The school had opened with one building, 5 teachers, a few teaching materials and 22 pupils. Gradually, with a lot of hard work and cajoling, funding has enabled the school to grow to a maximum roll of 125 pupils.

Gradually, Chris and Rog involved their friends, sending books, funds and anything they could muster. Then in August, realising how much more funding is needed to guarantee the continuation of the school, they set up the Hannah Memorial Academy Charitable Trust.

IMG 2348 IMG 0868 Carpentry Building the school IMG 2353

The Charitable Trust

How the trust supports the school.

Purpose

The Trust supports the school through Jason, his family and the staff – who have the skills, knowledge, determination and vision – but not the financial wherewithal.

The Trustees:

  • Christine Browning, BSc (Hons) –  Company Director
  • Roger Maclaverty, LLB – Retired Solicitor, Notary Public
  • Camilla Maclaverty, LLB(Hons), MSc Overseas Development
  • Ben Pattie – Public Relations and Social Media
  • Ram Varma –  ACA Chartered Accountant, Treasurer
  • Helen Wilde – Charity Fund Raiser and former High Sheriff of Bristol

The work of the Trust is fully supported by Hannah’s parents Hilary and Trevor Foster, who are kept informed at all times of what we do and what is happening in Hannah’s school.

How we manage the Trust

The Trustees give all their time for free, charge no personal expenses, and apart from minimal essential costs, every penny raised is used entirely for the benefit of the school and its pupils.

Even our interest bearing Bank Account is free! School Budgets are agreed in advance, all expenditure is recorded and monitored, and our aim is for at least annual visits by one or more trustees.

The school complex Reception Class Working Hard Picture15