Edenbridge & Westerham

Edenbridge and Westerham Rotarians Paul Leslie and Brenda Risdon met with staff and pupils at Westerham’s Valence School last week to present a cheque for £1,650 to help equip a new Sensory room. 

The school is the term-time home for around 120 young people, catering for students aged 4 to 19 with physical disability and complex medical needs, and has both day and boarding places. A staff team of over 200 people provide specialist teaching, social care, therapies and nursing care to an exceptionally high standard.

The new room, which will replace a former dairy, is a £90,000 project substantially funded by sponsored events organised by the school’s dedicated team of teaching and caring staff. 

One such event was a sponsored Cross Channel swim, which in total raised a staggering £28,000. The four staff members, pictured above with two Edenbridge and Westerham Rotary Club members and a lively group of pupils, were joined last October for the gruelling 17 hour challenge by staff members Kathy Downing and Sam Baker. 

Thanking Rotary for their contribution, swimmer and school Vice Principal Matt Strange said he would also like to publicly thank all their sponsors, and in particular local Estate Agents James Millard who provided all their swimming equipment and kit. This included the dry suits that the swimmers have put on once again for the photograph.

The Rotary Club of Edenbridge and Westerham have helped to obtain sponsorship for the swim, and their donation will help pay for a track-mounted hoist to assist pupils in and out of their wheelchairs when using the facilities of the new Sensory room. Club members’ personal donations were augmented by donations from two French Rotary Clubs. One was the Rotary Club of Yvetot in Normandy, a long time twin of the Westerham Club, the other the Rotary Club of La Baule Atlantique in Brittany where French-born swimmer Aurelie Reaud’s mother is a member. All this was topped off with a Rotary District Grant.

Once Rotarian Paul Leslie had handed over the cheque, Rotary Club President Elect Brenda Risdon complimented the Valence School team for their dedication. “To swim the English Channel and raise a staggering £28,000 is fantastic. To go on to also organise a Golf Day, a Hill Climb and a Summer Fair and get the total up to the staggering £90,000 required goes beyond incredible. Well done to you all.”