Sixth Form Business Studies BTEC pupils recently organised and managed an auction and film night for part of their unit ‘Managing a Business Event’. The events were held in support of the charity, AMECA, Alex’s Medical and Educational Clinic in Africa, which is committed to healthcare delivery, training healthcare professionals and to healthcare education in sub-Saharan African countries.
The pupils were split into two teams, and tasked with coming up with an original idea for raising money for the charity. One team decided to hold a film night, where friends and family were invited to the College to watch a film and pay a small donation to do so. Drinks and snacks were also on offer throughout the evening. The second team had rather a more difficult task on their hands; opting to host an auction evening, the pupils had to target local businesses to source prizes and sell tickets. As part of the unit, each group had to publicise the event and aim to raise a substantial amount of money for a chosen charity.
The auction, which took place in the Great Hall, had prizes such as signed photos from London Mayor Boris Johnson and rowing legend Steve Redgrave, along with jewellery, designer handbags and even teacher Mr Andrew White as a slave for a day! Mayor of Henley Lorraine Hillier attended the event, as well as the founder of the supported charity, AMECA, Mrs Ruth Markus. The Great Hall was packed with staff, family and friends for the auction, which raised over £4,000 for the charity. The biggest selling item on the night, donated by catering company Thomas Franks, was a meal for six (including wine) to be cooked at home, which went for £430. A combine harvester lesson was sold for £310! Mr Steve Shortland, Director of Sport at Wellington College, acted as auctioneer for the night, donning the gavel and creating enthusiasm amongst the crowd.
Between the two groups, a staggering amount of over £5,500 was raised for the charity. Shiplake's partner school Saint Andrew's International School (SAIntS), in Malawi, has also been raising money for the charity with fundraising initiatives. The added donations of over £3,330 means that a total of £8332 was raised for AMECA. Teacher Mr David Rose would like to thank SAIntS for their participation and said of the event that ‘they all worked tremendously well, putting in an incredible amount of effort and raising a great amount of money for a really worthwhile charity. Managing events like this is not an easy feat by any means, and I know that it has given them all a really good insight into the world of business.’