Community Charity (Shevet Achim)
Shevet Achim is Immanuel College's social action and charity committee whose aim is to enhance the quality of the pupils' spiritual, moral and social development.
In the most recent ISI report, inspectors commented on how impressed they were that Immanuel does not simply pay homage to charity with words, but provides opportunities for students to excel, particularly in a non-academic arena.
Prime examples include organising care packages for women refugees and our collections of food for GIFT and of toys for Camp Simcha.
Students research into different charitable organisations, and speak to the student committee about their chosen charity; a vote is then taken on which three charities to select for that year (which will include a UK charity of any denomination, a UK Jewish charity and an Israeli charity). Sums of money are raised through sale of food, Chanukah Fair and fun events such as Teachers' Debate and Open Mic night. We are now also the proud owners of a new mobile tuckshop, organised and managed by our Shevet Achim committee.
This year heralded our first Shevet Achim trip; 25 students journeyed to Odessa, Ukraine to enable them to see first-hand how funds we had raised on a sponsored walk the previous year had been spent. We experienced four days in the Tikva orphanages; a humbling experience.
Opportunities are also provided for pupils to gain leadership skills. The Alan Senitt Youth Leadership Scheme enables students to interact with other faiths and cultures. Our Year Eight pupils are encouraged to participate in the Yoni Jesner award scheme where they need to record twenty hours of volunteering. This culminates in a prestigious ceremony where students are awarded certificates by the Chief Rabbi. Our year 9 and 10 pupils are offered the opportunity to participate in WOHAA (Wings of Hope award) and we have had success two years running with two of our groups making it to the semi-finals. Shevet Achim permeates all aspects of life at Immanuel College by bringing together different sections of the community and creating vertical relationships across the school years. We believe in maximising the achievements of our students and developing them as people.