Charities Term

Lent Term at Lancing is synonymous with charitable action, as every House selects a charity to champion and pupils take full responsibility for designing, organising and delivering their selection of fundraising activities. What makes this tradition so distinctive is its entirely pupil‑led nature.

This year’s Charity Term once again showcased remarkable initiative, teamwork and imagination across the College. Below, representatives from each House share their experiences of planning, problem‑solving and leading efforts that raised both funds and awareness for a wide range of causes.

Emily S, Sankey’s:

This year’s Charity’s term was, dare I say, the greatest yet. From students running the equivalent of Lancing College to the Eiffel Tower, to sleeping outside in the Chapel cloisters overnight to the opportunity to buy a Valentine’s rose for your special someone… This is just a snippet of all the incredible events that went on this term to raise money for the chosen charities.

Each house selected and voted for their own charity that they would be supporting this Easter with no charity the same, ranging from local organisations to worldwide ones. Sankey’s, my House (also the best House), chose to support Breast Cancer Now, and we were paired with Handford House, who were supporting Chestnut Tree House.

Our charity week started off bright and early with me and the other reps cooking 20 pizzas in our House kitchen at 9am in preparation for the bake sale at morning break. Aside from one pizza which went rogue – launching itself off the cutting board, everything was a success. In addition, the Handford bakers really outdid themselves, baking up an impressive spread which included Tiramisu! (You heard me right, Tiramisu!)

Our other events included a whole school “Wear It Pink” day to raise awareness for Breast Cancer which was fantastic to see all the efforts especially from Mrs Britnell and Mr Bullen proudly sporting their pink! We also had a second-hand book swap bonanza and a House music concert, both of which were great.

Harriet S, Handford:

What I enjoyed the most was the planning section, this involved getting into our charity week groups to organise our events and bring the week together. Our bake sale was definitely our more successful event, although it was chaotic at times it was also extremely fun to run. One obstacle we had to overcome was catering being unable to provide sweet treats and pizza to our bake sale. However, this was overcome by encouraging people to bake in-house and at home the weekend before which resulted in us having more than enough bakes. Our book swap was a very relaxed event, and still successful, with us spending time in the library while people browsed through the large variety of books we had. Overall, our week was a rewarding and exciting experience requiring lots of teamwork and planning.

It was so truly inspiring to see everyone getting involved in all the events throughout the term and donating so generously. Thank you to everyone who participated and help organise what was, at times, quite demanding but ultimately an incredibly rewarding experience!

Grace H, Manor:

I enjoyed being able to raise money for important causes and helping other Houses on their charity weeks. I also enjoyed seeing everyone in school getting involved especially when Sankey’s had the ‘wear it pink’ non-school uniform day to support Breast Cancer Now as it was great to see most of the school in pink.

Roma G, Sankey’s:

I really enjoyed the sense of accomplishment after pulling off a successful charity week. It’s very fulfilling when you know that all the money for your charity wouldn’t have been raised without your work and planning. As well as this, it is an extremely good thing to be able to write and speak about to Universities, as it shows that you have good planning, organising and leadership skills. The most stressful part of the role was having to plan and send lots of emails, as people don’t always read their emails which is quite annoying. It was extremely insightful to see how much organisation goes into putting on events and has made me more aware and grateful of what the staff at school do to put on all these events and trips for us.

Sinan K, Gibbs’:
The most successful events were probably the various bake sales, generating quite a bit of revenue for each House that hosted one. I was able to staff quite a few, so I know firsthand that many people are hungry and willing to pay any price for some food. This meant that bake sales were able to generate quite a bit of revenue and were rather successful and easy to set up.

Anastasiia S, Handford:

I really enjoyed working as a team with the others to plan our charity week, everything went quite well in our week as we managed to put together a good plan for each event.

Hilmi M, Teme:

‘Rewarding’ describes being a charity representative best. I organised runs and bake sales for the Youth Sports Trust, Turning Tides and Fire Fighters Charity. It was fulfilling to hear how much we raised in the Bonfire Night fireworks and know that, as a team, we made it happen. There was much fun to be had, from the mandatory puns in assembly announcements to the advertising skits – at times it all felt like something out of The Apprentice – but our responsibility and organisation reflected the Lancing spirit of community service and reciprocity. We have learnt myriad skills, not least teamwork and independence, which we are all sure to bring with us wherever our ambitions lead us next.

Shimon M, School:

Working as a Charity Rep has, without a doubt, been one of the most rewarding experiences I have participated in at Lancing. Apart from learning teamwork, leadership and communication skills through the programme, I have got to witness firsthand the benefits that our charity initiatives can do, and be a part of a team of incredible people who are truly dedicated to making a positive difference.

One of the most meaningful moments of my time as a Charity Rep was our tour of the Clocktower Sanctuary, a centre for 16-25 year olds experiencing homelessness. As one of the Charity Reps who took part in the Head’s House Sleep-out, we were given the opportunity to tour the Clocktower Sanctuary site and see in person the work they do.

As we toured their foundation, I was especially struck by the compassion and selflessness of the staff, and the resilience of those they support. At the same time, it became clear to me that for charities like these, that operate on such fine margins, just how important any donation, regardless of its size, can be.

With the money we raised from the sleep out, Clocktower Sanctuary was able to provide 150 hot meals, showers and laundry service to people in need.

For those moving into Lower Sixth, I cannot recommend being a charity rep highly enough. It is an incredibly enriching experience, teaches you so much that could never be learnt in class, and lets you make a real difference to those in need.

Ashley T, Field’s:

I loved getting to plan our events this year for Charity Week, especially our biggest fundraiser—challenging staff and students to collectively run the distance from Lancing College Chapel to the Eiffel Tower. Turning it into a competition between Field’s and Teme made it even better, because it brought out enthusiastic runners and even convinced some non‑runners to give it a go. Even with all our planning, we still faced our fair share of chaos, especially during our “Spyring” event, where unexpected complications forced us to improvise solutions on the spot. There were many moments that were stressful, however they showed how well we could work together under pressure to fix the problems. Despite the obstacles, I’m genuinely proud of how strong and committed our group was throughout the whole week.

Andrew B, Teme:

The Spying Game was the most entertaining, and enjoyable event of the charity for me, as it combined, entertainment with fundraising for people in need, it involved the whole school, staff, teachers, students, everyone was so excited about who is the next person they have to catch!