We enjoy a partnership with Open Arms Academy in Eldoret, Kenya, where our school has had a link for over five years. During this time, seven members of our staff have visited the school to share good practice and enrich our global understanding. Staff from Open Arms Academy have also visited Heron Hill and been able to observe lessons and be involved in our annual Kenya Day.

Together with St Thomas's School, Kendal, our partnership seeks both to support the education of children at Open Arms and also widen our own perspectives - both staff and pupils - as we learn from our Kenyan colleagues. We have particularly enjoyed connecting through music, by sharing songs through recorded videos as well as live online video calls. We hope there will be many more of these happy occasions! 

Open Arms Academy provides a quality education for around 330 Kenyan children; around 140 of these children have been rescued from desperate situations and now thrive in the Open Arms Village. The school also serves the surrounding community and supports many local families by providing meals for the children, as well as their lessons.

Open Arms has recently become part of the Stand By Me charity which supports schools in several countries. You can find out more by following these links:

https://www.standby.me/countries/kenya

https://www.openarmsinternational.org/blog/categories/open-arms-academy

The current climate crisis we face only emphasises the need for all of us to connect and learn with and from others so that we can work together to find solutions. Our link is a very important part of ensuring the next generation has a sense of global responsibility, inspiring them to take action and  become change makers and creative, collaborative thinkers.

Our latest live link happened in March 2023 when Class 3 at Open Arms and Year 4 at Heron Hill met on a Zoom call to share a song about caring for our planet, and ideas of what we could do in our schools to make a difference.