We understand education in its broadest sense, with our supported CSR projects covering a variety of initiatives. This year we were excited to get involved for the first time with Jersey Sings!, a community music project involving more than 1,400 students from 28 schools across Jersey which culminated in two fantastic shows at Fort Regent last month. The benefits of musical education for children are well-known, and what was particularly compelling about this project was how it opened up these benefits to such a large number of local children.
We've been proud to support the re-design of Beresford Street Kitchen, a social enterprise that provides quality education, training and employment opportunities for people with learning disabilities to enable them to reach their full potential. Members of the Ogier team joined in during their weekends in the build-up to the refurbishment earlier this year, to do some of the heavy lifting and clearing out, so it was particularly rewarding for them to see the excellent results a few weeks later.
We have continued to support Jersey Heritage's campaign to re-discover one of the Island's most iconic landmarks, Elizabeth Castle. Their unique Castle Schools project, sponsored by Ogier in June, saw hundreds of local primary school children brought to the castle to learn the history of the English Civil War, look at the maths of pre-decimal money, and the science of gunpowder and firing muskets – which proved a particular favourite with the Key Stage 2 students.
Our commitment to education goes well beyond sponsorship, as we actively encourage all of our team to make an impact as individuals through volunteering days to work on a cause or charitable project that's close to their heart, and a firm-sponsored kick start to charity fund raising.Ogier volunteers have made a regular commitment to read with children at a local primary school as part of Every Child Our Future, and earlier in the year our mentors supported ten enterprising teams in the Channel Islands Student Business Challenge, which Ogier is also proud to sponsor. This year's challenge saw 40 teams of secondary school students create and grow their own businesses, building their confidence and skills including teamwork and financial management, which will stand them in good stead beyond the classroom.
From visiting castles to helping teenagers with their profit and loss spreadsheets, Ogier's team throw themselves into many great projects around the Island. We look forward to supporting the Jersey community throughout 2018 and beyond.
