The school in the village of Shygowe, with its bare walls, lack of electricity, dirt floors and play areas could not be more different than the facilities that pupils of Marchwood Junior School enjoy in our village.

As part of their effort to bring improvements and strengthen the link between the two schools, Marchwood children have raised £2,000 with a sponsored swim, made hundreds of finger puppets as gifts for the Rwandan children, plus a banner with their handprints as a symbol of their union.

Teacher Miriam Bateman delivered the puppets on her latest two week visit to Rwanda, to help train their teaching staff and develop new skills.