Preparations for travelling to Malawi took place in Liverpool and Shrewsbury recently. Nineteen young people from both the Shewsy and Shrewsbury School will travel and work together at the project run by the charity Medic Malawi, which includes a hospital, two orphanages and ‘The Shrewsbury School Eye Clinic’.

Getting to know the others on the trip was the priority for the visit to Liverpool, and this included team games based on Twister, teaching each other good hand-washing techniques, buying and selling in a ‘market stall’ and chatting over fish and chips. The Liverpool contingent took their guests on a ‘Ferry ‘cross the Mersey’, and after a while, it no longer seemed to matter particularly whether an individual was a Fifth or Sixth former, from Everton or Shropshire.

This year has been tough in Malawi: the rains were late and inadequate, and the Hospital’s Malnutrition Centre has been a lifeline for adults and children. This Community Service expedition will include the chance to see the work of the Shrewsbury Eye Clinic first hand, as patients have their sight restored. The young people will be painting the new bakery, built to generate income for the hospital, and will be helping out at the orphanage, which cares for over 100 children, from newborns to teenagers.