News

Warmth, dedication and generosity of staff “outstanding”

Trustees Amanda Morris-Drake and Becky Sewell have just returned from a very successful visit to Chennai, the first by trustees from the UK since Covid-19.

Amanda, pictured above, reports: “I was very impressed by the care and support provided at both the girls and boys hostels. The warmth, dedication and generosity of the staff is outstanding. They are a wonderful team and it is clear to see that vulnerable children thrive under their care.

“I was impressed by the self esteem the girls had and their wish to do well and lead independent lives. It was clear that ‘Girl Power’ is promoted and very well received. It has been an absolute pleasure to meet everyone who works for the Satkaarya Trust (our sister charity in Chennai) and  the happy smiling faces of the children are a testament to the wonderful work done.”

 

Book your tickets now for Steventon Spice Lunch!

The 2022 Batemans Spice Lunch with be taking place on Saturday 10 September at 12.30pm at Steventon Village Hall in Oxfordshire.

Hosted by Nick and Mary Thompson, this fundraiser is a great opportunity to hear the latest news from Chennai from Alex Jacob, founder of the Batemans Trust, and enjoy a fabulous homemade curry along with fellow supporters .

Tickets cost £15. To book and pay, please follow this link or download and complete this form.

The full address is: Steventon Village Hall, The Green, Steventon, Oxfordshire OX13 6RR.

 

August 2022 news update

We have four excellent pieces of news from Chennai.

The licence to run our boys hostel has been renewed for a further three years while, despite all the disruption of the past two years, 100 per cent of the girls and boys who sat their end-of-year standard exams were successful. Those who finished 12th standard are applying to go to higher education.

On the staff front we have appointed a new assistant warden and a social worker, who is currently researching educational needs as part of our planning for outreach work in Sendrambakkam while we wait for the school to be built.

The picture above shows some of our children getting ready for their first day of term earlier this summer.

 

 

Legacies boost funds

We regret to announce the recent death of Ray Bissill and extend our condolences to his family. Ray had visited Satkaarya and our children in Chennai and has proved, with his family, a stalwart supporter of our work for many years. We were stunned, delighted and a little overwhelmed to learn that Ray has bequeathed £50,000 to Batemans.

This follows on from a donation from the estate of Mary Stark. Mary left some of her estate to her good neighbour and regular Batemans supporter, Chris Glover. He used the unexpected legacy to make a generous donation of £25,000 to Batemans.

 

 

 

 

Truck festival catering beats the £10,000 mark!

The Batemans catering stall was once more on the frontline in July at Steventon’s Truck festival, described as the Godfather of the small music festival.

It certainly proved a godfather to Batemans, delivering a profit of more than £10,500, the largest amount we have ever raised from the event.

Dozens of people worked shifts over four days to run the Batemans stall – a fantastic effort led by trustees Alex Jacob and Marion Mills.

Here’s Alex’s catchy summary of everyone’s efforts.

“At least 40 volunteers plus 10 younger ones who mucked in too!
Choppers and stirrers, can openers and sautiers with me (Alex) in in the hall
Servers, payment-takers, rice and potato cookers and temp testers and washer-uppers at the stall
Wagon-pullers to transport the food
Shoppers
Setter-uppers
Taker-downers
and sandwich board wearers!
Child and dog minders
Cooking for 10 – 11 hours for 4 days
Serving for 10 hours a day plus setting up and clearing away
Every volunteer did a 3-hour shift for at least 3 days – about  8-10 people on each shift
Crazy  – but worth it!”

Sunrise on the sea

For a special treat the older girls were taken out recently to reward all their studying and help in the hostel while other children enjoyed a trip out to the seaside to watch dawn rise over the sea.

Our mission is to support our children in developing as all-round citizens. This is why extra-curricular clubs are run at the weekend so that they get some relief from their hectic school schedule and expand their interests.

Each child can participate in any two clubs. The clubs include art, craft, dance, cooking, eco club, sewing, computer, enterprise/ business and media.

Schooling continues to go well and 34 children, both boys and girls, have been enrolled in Emmanuel Methodist School and are transported together in our Batemans bus.

Most of those who finished 10th grade are continuing school into 11th grade, while those who have completed 12th grade are now applying to go to college.

Meanwhile, two new students, aged 12 and 15, have been admitted into our girls home and are settling down well in their new environment.

 

Fundraising snippets

In July ten people enjoyed a stroll along the Brightlingsea waterfront in Essex to visit the Batemans Tower.  Although the tower’s name has nothing to do with our charity, supporter Anne Fitzgerald decided it was a perfect excuse for a little fundraiser, providing a slap-up afternoon tea in her garden afterwards and raising a fantastic £200.

In May, a very successful plant and cake sale in Essex raised nearly £1,500, shared between the local church Ukrainian support group, MSUK and Batemans. Another similar event is being held on the morning of Saturday August 20 at St John’s Church in Chelmsford. It is being advertised as an opportunity to fill gaps left by plants defeated by the hot weather and scorching sunrays.

A curry night is being scheduled in Cambridge for later this year, and a quiz night in Chelmsford on November 12… we’ll keep you posted!

Fundraising events get underway again

We are delighted that, despite pandemic restrictions, and thanks to your support, we remain financially stable.

With the easing of restrictions, some of our regular fundraising events are returning, with the first of 2022 being a clothes swapping event in Cambridge in February – organised by trustee Amanda Morris-Drake – which raised several hundred pounds. If you’d like advice on holding a fundraising event for Batemans do get in touch.

Looking further ahead, the Batemans catering stall is booked for its traditional outing at the Truck Festival in Oxfordshire in July. The picture above shows two of our supporters doing their thing at the event back in 2014!

Hitting the thousands

Madeline Peters organised various amazing fundraisers in 2021, from baking cakes, selling flowers and bunting, to running a half-marathon. Her fantastic, and continuing efforts, have raised more than £1,000 towards Batemans’ Grand 100 total.

Meanwhile, to mark her 80th birthday, long-term supporter Helen Fletcher has also raised more than £1,000 for Batemans. Unfortunately, like so many, she had to self- isolate for a while. But the great news is that, during her isolation, Helen used her creative skills to design and print greeting cards to sell for Batemans, adding to her fundraising total.