UK Aid Match appeal raises over £500k for Sense International

Sense International is to begin a programme to transform the lives of children and young adults with deafblindness in Bangladesh, following a successful UK Aid Match appeal. The My Turn to Learn appeal raised £521,000, including a £216,000 contribution in UK Aid Match funding from the UK government. Following the campaign, Sense International will work with local partners in Bangladesh to improve access to education and opportunities to work for children and young people with dual sensory loss in the country. The programme will recruit and train specialist teachers who will work with families to support the children at school; training for mainstream teachers; the creation of a model school to promote best practice; and targeted meals so that children with deafblindness are well enough to learn. This is the second time Sense has run a UK Aid Match appeal. In 2015, it launched a campaign called ‘Finding Grace’ to introduce screening for infants in Kenya and Uganda with sight and hearing impairments. Director of Sense International, Alison Marshall, said: “Currently, children with deafblindness in Bangladesh rarely get the opportunity to learn vital communication and life skills, leaving them isolated and at greater risk of poverty. “Thanks to the tremendous support of the generous British public and the UK government, we will be able to transform the lives of children and young people with deafblindness across Bangladesh.” The UK Government matched eligible public donations to the My Turn to Learn appeal, which ran from 18 October 2017 to 17 January 2018, through its UK Aid Match scheme, which is run by the Department for International Development and sees the government contribute £1 of UK aid for every £1 donated to a UK Aid Match charity appeal. Round 1 of the second phase of UK Aid Match matched 25 appeals running between September 2017 and June 2018 with an estimated £30 million matched. The latest funding round had a closing date for the submission of concept notes of 25 May with successful applicants invited to submit a full application between 2 July and 27 July. More information on how the scheme works is available on the UK Aid Match site.   Main image: Minister of State for International Development Lord Bates and Alison Marshall, with staff.    

from UK Fundraising https://ift.tt/2Kaj6mU