Forget the Spice Girls re-union… eight students from Bruton School for Girls showed everyone what girl power is really all about when they travelled to Zanzibar, Tanzania, last summer to build alongside Habitat for Humanity homepartners in the village of Mtende.
The girls, aged between 16 and 18, spent two weeks of their summer holidays working with local builders and people from the community on seven safe, decent homes.
The new Habitat for Humanity homes in Mtende have been designed in collaboration with the community and are built using locally sourced sustainable materials. They will replace the traditional housing, tembes – mud and thatch huts that are often damaged in the rainy season and in need of constant repair.
Lydia Newton, 16, of Wincanton said: "I learnt so much about the importance of a community and how, working together, you can achieve a great deal.
"I loved working with people from different backgrounds to build someone a long-lasting home to provide protection for these fantastic families."
Fellow pupil, Isabel Hughes, added, "I learned the importance of being willing to help out and join in. Everyone in Mtende worked as a community. The village had an amazing atmosphere."
The school undertook fundraising for the trip and received donations from Shepton Mallet Rotary Club, work clothing from Dickies UK in Midsomer Norton and tools from Travis Perkins in Wincanton.
The donated items were given to builders and tradesmen in Zanzibar, who are able to continue building new homes with the help of Habitat for Humanity.
