CHILDREN from Fordham Primary School have helped to give disabled youngsters thousands of miles away a brighter future. The pupils have raised money to buy eight pairs of oxen for deaf children in the slums of Africa, giving them the chance to be accepted

CHILDREN from Fordham Primary School have helped to give disabled youngsters thousands of miles away a brighter future.

The pupils have raised money to buy eight pairs of oxen for deaf children in the slums of Africa, giving them the chance to be accepted in society.

The youngsters in Chad are ostracised because of their disability and have no hope of getting work when they leave school.

But the oxen mean they will be able to plough the land, eventually feeding their families and community so they can be accepted.

The school, recently praised as "outstanding" in an Ofsted report, raised £1,500 to buy the oxen, yokes, ploughs and tethering ropes.

It launched its appeal after headteacher, Kevin Bullock, met Dawn Elliott, a parishioner from a church in Bury St Edmunds, who has dedicated her life to helping disadvantaged people abroad.

Mrs Elliott is currently at the school in Chad and the children keep in regular contact with her, receiving text messages about their oxen.

"We cannot even begin to appreciate the type of conditions these children are living in, and it is wonderful to think we have been able to do something to make their lives better," said Mr Bullock.

"The project has really opened the eyes of the children here in Fordham.

"This is not from a textbook, it is real life, and it has really made them appreciate what they have and realise there are people in the world who are a lot less fortunate than they are.