Highfield and Brookham students go 24 hours without tech for charity

Three sisters from East Meon, Hampshire, have taken on a lockdown challenge to raise money for the Hampshire Medical Fund’s ‘Dig Deep Campaign’. Daisy age 13, Flora age 11 and Betty age 8, who are past and current pupils at Highfield and Brookham Schools, challenged themselves to stay in their dining room for 24 hours without any screens – iPads, phones, TV – and only allowed themselves to leave the room to use the loo. They brought their bedding into the room as well as games, books and toys to keep themselves entertained.

Flora age 11 said, “We moved stuff out of the room to make our own areas to have some space from each other. We found it quite hard and did squabble a bit!”

Highfield and Brookham Schools in Liphook, where Flora and Betty are current pupils and where Daisy attended until last summer, place great importance on children understanding their place in the wider community and inspire their pupils to engage with the wider world.

Flora continued, “The reason we decided to do this is because we are all so grateful to live where we live with lots of space to go, but realise it is not like that for most and want to do our bit to help the wonderful NHS and the patients.”

So far, they have raised £525 for The Hampshire Medical Fund’s Dig Deep Campaign. The Hampshire Medical Fund exists to buy medical equipment that falls outside the NHS funding remit due to time or cost. The critical equipment which they are currently fundraising for will be for Basingstoke, Winchester and Andover hospitals as they battle against COVID-19.

Phillip Evitt, Headmaster at Highfield School said, “It makes me extremely proud to be a headmaster at this time, seeing our wonderful pupils such as Daisy, Flora and Betty doing all they can to support the community through the Covid-19 crisis. They have been so creative in ways they can help.”