BUPA initiatives

Blatchington Mill School breakfast club

BUPA Community Connections supports Blatchington Mill School and Sixth Form College in Hove, East Sussex, England, by providing funds and volunteers to run a breakfast club from 7.30am to 8.30am.

People from BUPA International in Brighton have volunteered to help teachers and classroom assistants with the venture, which attracts up to 150 children. This enhances our educational programme of working with schools around the country with book buddies and mentoring.

The breakfast club meets every school day and the BUPA International volunteers attend each Wednesday, helping the youngsters to use computers, giving language tuition and assisting with reading, spelling and maths.

The school's business manager David Lindfield said: "There are many children with working parents who don't get a nutritious or structured start to the day.

"We wanted to offer students the opportunity to do something other than kick their heels on the street and ensure they had a nutritious breakfast. The club also encourages children with educational difficulties to get some extra tuition. "It is proving very successful and already has street cred. We are noticing better attendance at school from some pupils. "The school is grateful to BUPA International staff for volunteering their skills and would love BUPA people to be involved every day of the week if enough volunteers come forward."

International's Karen Froude, who manages the company's volunteers, said: "It's a combination of learning and having fun. Everybody has a skill they can offer these youngsters. Community Connections helps pay for breakfast for parents who cannot afford it and all the children produce a smart credit card in payment so nobody feels any stigma."

The breakfast club features in a new video to be shown around BUPA to promote the work of Community Connections.