Student power

A group of students from Oaklands College have raised an amazing £800 for The Encephalitis Society, a charity that is personally important to them.

Headed by Ross Brewer, a first year Engineering BTEC student and past sufferer of Encephalitis, a rare form of meningitis, the Student Council elected to raise money for the society after Ross put forward a strong case for supporting the charity at the start of the year.

The Student Council, a body of students interested in the governance of Oaklands College, planned an array of events for the Oaklands Summer Fayre designed to raise money and raise awareness of the work the society does.

They arranged for a society representative to be there on the day and had a very strong presence with an information stall, cake sales, a tombola and over 700 books for sale.

Ross Brewer also persuaded the St Albans Football Academy and Oaklands Beauty team to donate proceeds from their fundraising to the Encephalitis Society.

After a very successful day, any leftover books were sold at a car boot sale and through charity shops.

Ross Brewer said: “I would like to thank the Student Council as well as my friends and family who helped to raise such a fantastic amount. It was a co-ordinated effort and I hope to continue to promote awareness for this worthy cause.”

Denise Madden, Student Services at Oaklands College, commented: “Ross is very passionate about the good work the Encephalitis Society does and has given several, excellent presentations to various groups to assure their involvement in supporting the cause. The whole Student Council , as well as other friends, students and his family have supported him and worked hard together, giving up their free time to raise money for this important charity that supports affected adults and children.”