A THIRTEEN-strong team from Knutsford and Northwich is heading to Kenya to support a schools link forged by the last Lord Egerton.

Headteachers of Egerton Primary School in Knutsford and Wincham Primary School in Northwich, are among the team – which is also represented by Roberts Bakery – set to spend 11 days visiting partner schools 4,000 miles away.

With a diverse teaching and enrichment learning programme planned for pupils at Egerton School and DEB School – both in Njoro, Kenya – the trip will also see hundreds of books flown out to stock a new library funded through the Egerton Schools’ Foundation.

The trip is the ninth exchange visit between the two Egerton schools, founded 46 years apart by Lord Wilbraham Egerton and nephew Maurice Egerton, respectively.

They linked up in 2005, with Cheshire-based Egerton headteacher Alison Hooper developing the partnership and foundation.

She said: “We’ve worked hard over the last decade to forge links between the two schools and to develop a powerful and equitable approach to teaching and learning between adults and children in two very different countries.

“We have an incredible team of people who will make this visit a great success and everyone is extremely excited about what we have planned.

“The connection between the two schools is enhanced with every visit and the children and Kenya and Knutsford will all gain from this unique shared experience.”

Among the others making the trip are Wincham head Matt Boot, Lindsay Occlestone – a fourth generation member of the Roberts family – and retired Roberts Bakery company nurse Jill Adams.

Her daughter Becky and two teachers from Egerton in Knutsford will be teaching children, with three coaches from Multiflex providing sports coaching. The youngest member of the team is Alison’s 15-year old niece Beth Fowler.

In a diverse programme, the pupils in Kenya will learn about everything from sports, to bread-making, to the potential health effects of child-bearing at a young age.

Lindsay said: “This will be my second visit to Kenya. It’s a great privilege to be part of this amazing project and to improve and enrich the lives of the children there.

“We’re really looking forward to the bread making and helping the children to build their skills doing something they’ve never done before, but whilst also having a lot of fun.”

The team heads out on Saturday, February 10, returning on Wednesday, February 21.

tesf.org.uk