Old Wandsworthians Memorial Trust

News from Grant Holders

• Ali Snare • Olivia Liddiard • Jack Clements • Daniel Esparraguera • Chloe Wooldridge • Lloyd England • Sian Clarke

Ali Snare

Ali Snare & dad Paul

On the 11th July 2007 I (Ali Snare) ventured out of Europe for the first time in my life to go and explore and learn about the totally different cultures of Uganda. I went with 10 other students and 4 teachers from Burford School in Oxfordshire. I had no idea what I was getting myself into!

The trip was part of a 2-year exchange programmme with Bishop Dunstan School in the region of Kalangala, which is situated on one of 84 very small Sesse Islands on Lake Victoria in Uganda. The programme, called the Uganda Link, is the longest running link in the UK and has been awarded charitable status. This was the thirteenth exchange of students. Our teachers paired us up with a Ugandan partner and we had the chance to write to them before we went out to see them.

Mosis, Ali & Harruna

My partner is called Haruna Saunna; he is 18 and studies geography, physics, chemistry, maths, biology and economics.

We finally got a ferry over to the island from the capital city of Kampala on the 12th of July. As we arrived we were loaded into tiny minibuses and our bags were taken by a pick-up truck off to the school. As we drove across the paradise island hundreds of small children chased our shaky mini bus down the red dusty tracks all the way to the school, they were screaming and doing Red Indian like noises and singing.

When we arrived at the school all 200 of the students from the school surrounded our minibus and carried on singing. It was so overwhelming and I was so nervous as I was dragged out and given about a million hugs, greetings and handshakes!

I eventually found my partner and he was so kind, wanted to take my bags, asked how my family is and how is England - it was almost as if we had met before and we were already good friends!

Throughout the trip I got to know Haruna really well as we did everything together and I also had the chance to learn about his way of living and the simple lifestyle that he and his fellow students live compared to the way we live in England.

Throughout the three week visit we:-

Forward pass?

Visited local jungles where there were many monkeys and held group bonding sessions on the most beautiful beach on the island by Lake Victoria which we were not allowed to go in as there is a lot of the water disease, Bilharzia. We could play volley ball here and this is where we started to teach both the girls and boys how to play rugby, it was the most picturesque place ever to play rugby! As none of the partners had ever heard of rugby nor did they understand how to play or what the rules were, there was a slight communication barrier at first but eventually we got them started on a small ball skills drill of basic passing. However this took a while till they all fully understood how to pass a ball with two hands and they were trying to spin it with both ends which was quite amusing. After a solid hour of starting to run and pass we were all pretty shattered and baking in the heat, so we decided to rest in the shade of palm trees with a warm coca cola which we all bought our partners and which only cost the equivalent of 10p.

Slept in the boarding house dormitories which were basically a big maze of mosquito nets (bought by our fundraising) and smelly boarding boys.

Showered with a cup of water and a non existent shower which was quite fun.

Cooked with the school dinner lady in her back garden; this included chopping fire wood and peeling potatoes, bananas, cassava, etc, stewing meat, mashing peanuts, slicing fruit and then cooking them.

Attended a church service where the whole town had a chance to meet us and we exchanged dances and songs; we had to sing "Bread of heaven", "Yellow submarine" and various primary school songs which the Ugandans could also sing along to.

Taught our partners from scratch how to use their new school computers.

Did an educational visit to the island's palm oil plantation which is actually owned by a foreign company called Bidico. This day provoked a lot of different opinions and debates as we were shown around this massive plantation.

Took part in the lessons at their school, where I taught geography with about 40 people in the class and with the teacher at the front.

Taught touch rugby with 3 of my fellow Burford students to 4 primary schools.

Ugandan Pub?

The best part of my whole Uganda experience was the home stays with Haruna. Here I would come home from school at about 8.30pm and we then went to collect water. During one of my home stays, as a treat for Haruna, I hired us out a moped which turned out to be about £1.70 for 3 hours; we were then able to drive around the island, collecting a pineapple from a farm in the middle of nowhere, collecting fresh tilapia fish from the lake at a small fishing village as well as visiting nearly every single one of the English students in their new homes with their huge families, all in different locations but many in the heart of the jungle in mini villages made of mud huts.

To round the trip off, took a bus with our partners to drive through Queen Elizabeth National Park, which was stocked full of fantastic African animals such as lions, elephants, zebra, giraffes, cheetah, leopard, hippo, buffalo, wild birds, warthog, antelope, crocodiles etc. We were able to also take a canal trip to get a closer look at the crocodiles, hippos, buffalo and the drinking places which was amazing.

As you can see I made the most of my time there in Uganda and hope to return possibly in my gap year after university to return to see my partner Haruna and visit many of my new friends and teachers from the island, as I feel I could give more to the island.

Olivia Liddiard

Hello from Ghana - An early email

Well where can I start. The last seven days have been a rollercoaster!

I started off by arriving in Accra, only 2 and a half hours late, and as I walked out of the airport I felt like a deer looking in to head lights, I couldn't believe I had finally arrived and this was going to be my home for the next 6 months.

My first impressions of Ghana. After Frances and the driver had picked us up, were busy, chaotic and the surroundings were just completely different from what I've experienced before...you buy water from the side of the road and drink it out of plastic bags, as well as ice cream.

The Ghanaians are very friendly, if anything over friendly and are happy to assist you with anything you need. So far I've had 5 "I love you's" and 4 marriage proposals, lol! Everywhere you go they shout Broonie, Broonie - to us that means foreigner, it's quite amusing to hear it from a 2 yr old when walking along the side of the road.

The women here are amazing!! The amount of produce they carry on the head for hours on end is astonishing! and they do it all with babies strapped to their backs as they get on and off trotros that are crammed full and so tight...I felt sorry for the babies getting bashed around but by the Ghanaians attitudes with children, I think they must be used to it.

Audrey was the first lady who we stayed with, and it was very strange to see young children as house help. Children usually become house help out here when other family members are unable to look after them but the majority of them are treated well and still attend school to get an education.

Audrey was lovely and very hospitable, but I can not say the same for the beds, considering when two of us sat on one to go to sleep it broke! lol! However, after all the emails about water shortages I received before I went, I was quite amazed to have running water and a flushing toilet. It wasn't until I reach Kumasi that I noticed the difference as I am currently showering out of a bucket - that's including washing my hair, lol! and the electricity goes out about 6pm - 12am so eating dinner in the dark has become the norm.

My family in Kumasi are wonderful! Ma and Kofie are the parents. They have four children, one of whom is at uni, but MG, Nana and Sawo all live at home, including their two cousins Evette and Ivan and their uncle. Therefore the house is extremely busy, but it's great to be around a big family all the time, I'm loving it!

The food is taking some getting used to, lots of carbs and very spicy, but Tim - the guy already here - is brilliant, he has lots of stories to tell about his travels and is more than happy to show me around. The two girls I'm with - Nicki and Holly - are lovely, although Holly is a little quiet for my liking, but sweet all the same.

The other day we all went for a trip to the Lake which was enclosed amongst lots of hills where you could see the women cooking dinner outside, as is commonly found in Ghana, usually on the streets. But guess who got burnt? - me and I am now in quite a bit of pain! I've just finished my first day at the orphanage and it was extremely difficult to see some of the sights and know how to deal with young children who have mental disabilities, I'm there for the rest of the week and am not expecting it to be an easy week, if anything it's going to be very intense and emotionally draining!

I'm sorry if this email sounds rushed but my time is running out and the computer is very slow!

Jack Clements

This year at university the funding from Old Wandsworthians has really helped me on my TV course. I have learnt how to use industry standard TV equipment, and a professional standard TV studio. Within my last year I have also made several films including a 5 minute documentary on the local Bournemouth Aquarium. I have also made several productions of my own. Living on my own has also been an experience which I feel has helped me gain more confidence and become more independent. Although I was still more than happy to come home after a year so mummy could do all my washing and ironing and also feed me some proper food. I am still waiting to hear about my exchange with a Canadian student so I can study a term in Canada doing the same course. I am really looking forward to the next year at University and hope I carry on developing and learning new skills.

Daniel Esparraguera (danielesparraguera@hotmail.com)

I Never Thought I would End up in Prison

At the age of 17 after a year of struggling with A levels in Biology and History and with the prospect of another year of classes and essays leaving me distinctly under-whelmed, I headed back up Sutherland Grove to find a job.

After working in Sales and Marketing for a Display and Exhibitions production company, a short and unsuccessful attempt to run a start up dot com and finally managing an outbound call team for a motoring magazine, I found that I became more interested in how and why relationships form and what effect they had. After a short search I found myself enrolling at Whitelands College, Roehampton University in their BSc in Integrative Counselling. After a gap of 23 years I headed back down Sutherland Grove, past the new school and up to Whitelands College to re start my education.

My course focuses on the study of Psychodynamic, Person Centred, Existential and Behaviour models of Theory. I quickly realised that the challenges of reading theory and writing assignments would be a greater than I expected but also the process of engaging with the course and my fellow students as we examined points of theory and related them to our individual experience was by far the most difficult aspect. Typically group discussions are lively and sometimes confrontational, as we struggle to understand and interpret our feelings and reactions to each other. Having left the world of work where I was in most instances sure of the answers to many questions and situations, I had moved into an area were I had to struggle with be unsure and not knowing the answers.

During the second year of the programme I had to find a clinical placement so that I could gain experience of my own practice. The prospect of starting out as a complete novice in a new field, competing with other student counsellors at later stages of the training for a placement and the reality of working alone with a client for the first time provided another challenge that at times left me questioning my decision to change direction. My search for a placement led me to accept an offer from Wandsworth Prison Counselling Service, an independent service, working with the inmate population in HMP Wandsworth.

In many ways I have found visiting the prison a pleasant experience and have worked in far more uncomfortable atmospheres. Meeting with my clients provides another quite different picture of the life of an inmate and because of their situation and previous experience much of the work done in early sessions is around the building of trust and honesty, hopefully allowing the client/counsellor relationship to develop. Clients issues are similar to those that my fellow counsellors hear in other placements, current and previous relationships, life direction and stress but the fact that my clients are in prison adds another dimension. I am repeatedly amazed by the ability of inmates to open up emotionally to explore difficult issues and then at the end of our session return to their life in the prison with its vastly differing culture.

Towards the end of September I will return to Roehampton for the third and final year of my degree and would like to thank the trustees for their support during the second year of my course that has allowed me to continue with this placement. I wish those about to start a new season an enjoyable winter with plenty of success on and off the playing field.

Chloe Wooldridge

I am currently in my third and final year at Roehampton University working towards a Film and Television studies degree. In my current semester I am taking Writing for the Screen, a course in which I have to create an entire screenplay from scratch to last between thirty-five minutes on a subject of my choice. I am really enjoying this module and screen writing itself is a profession I would definitely like to pursue after I graduate.

My main hope after I graduate is to get a job in the film or television business, I am quite aware that it can be difficult to get a job in this profession but I am quite willing to work my way up through the industry. My plan in the November after I graduate is to spend six months travelling around countries including Australia, New Zealand and Fiji as I feel I may not get this chance again when I settle down to full time employment.

I have thoroughly enjoyed the two years I have already spent at Roehampton University and would recommend the experience to anyone. I am looking forward to my final year and would like to thank the Old Wandsworthians Memorial Trust Fund for their continued support.

Lloyd England

After completing my studies, I wish to further develop my abilities in the art of 'Principled' negotiation. This is to be contrasted with 'Positional' negotiation, whereby the parties assume a 'position' and then conceed a series of concessions until they meet somewhere in between (the classic 'haggle'). The problem with the 'haggle' is that neither secure quite what they wished. In a principled negotiation, the idea is to focus on Interests, acknowledge and maybe test unilateral Alternatives including one's BATNA (Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement) - i.e. the 'walk away' point, with reference to Standards (legal / industry standard / market value/ customs, etc). This gives rise to the creative development of Options that meet both parties' Interests, explored safely as firmly seperated from Commitments. This is facilitated by Communicating sincerely (listening is as important as imparting information) to build a Relationship that can deal well with differences. Therein lies the wish to strike a deal which leaves no value 'on the table'. This is the product of some 30 years research into negotiation by the Harvard Negotiation Project, seminal text 'Getting to Yes', Fisher & Ury eds. Beyond the law, life is also a series of negotiations. By focussing on people's interests I think it is possible to persue much more value out of any situation than is currently the case. I will hopefully contribute to society for the next 50 years. I would like to see a reduction in all violence, with sexual offences treated as severely as murder. It is unnacceptable and the cost to individuals and society as a whole is horrific.

It is high time we 'raised the bar' and sent out a clear message that violence is no longer an acceptable facet of our society; I thus forsee the demise of boxing, violent governments and other blood sports concurrent with this thinking. I would also like to see the 'Religions' finally get the 'monkey off their backs', finish fighting about differences, and focus on similarities. I find it laughably abhorrant that religion remains the biggest cause of war, and only hope that this has not been recently surpassed by the U.S.'s need for oil. 'Corporate Social Responsibility' will also rise to the fore, as we now accept the 'economy', thus corporations, drive human endeavour. These will also have to raise their game in terms of good business (a.k.a. people) practice, and will no doubt need encouragment to do so. It is an exciting time to be alive, and I feel suitably priviledged to be here. I will contribute tirelessly wherever I can to assist in clear communication and the maintenance of civil liberties. If 'Eternal vigilence is the price of liberty', here happily sits one boy with his eyes firmly open.

Best wishes to you all, and Long Live Old Wandsworthians!

Lloyd M. England

LLB (Hons), LPC.Dip, LLM (IP), Trademark

Attorney (AUS & NZ)

Sian Clarke

I am grateful to the Old Wandsworthians Memorial Trust for the grant to assist in my further educational studies. I completed a Nursing Degree at Surrey University in 1998 and during this time and subsequently whilst doing a PhD and working at Kingston Hospital, I developed a desire to develop my clinical knowledge and skills further and train to be a doctor. Recently in the UK a few medical schools have developed an accelerated medical course (4 years instead of 5) for those who already have a degree.

I was lucky enough to gain a place at Birmingham University and started the course in September this year. The course is incredibly busy and hard work but very enjoyable and even at this early stage I spend a day a week observing and learning clinical skills in a Birmingham GP practice. During the course I hope to take the opportunity to spend a short time overseas experiencing and contributing to healthcare in a third world country. On completion of the course I hope to be able to work in hospital medicine perhaps back in the South where perhaps it rains a bit less and even specialise in rugby injuries!

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