Frank Cottrell-Boyce, acclaimed Liverpool author and Children’s Laureate, visited St Paul’s Catholic Junior School in West Derby on Monday, 20 October, to support the Mary’s Meals Pocket Money for Porridge campaign. Frank inspired pupils to become heroes for hungry children in some of the world’s poorest communities by donating their pocket money for porridge.

 

The campaign runs in partnership with Inner Wheel and encourages pupils to donate just 10p – enough for Mary’s Meals to serve a nutritious school meal to a child.

 

Mary’s Meals currently feeds over three million children every school day across 16 countries. In places like Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, the meal is a vitamin-enriched porridge that gives children the energy to learn and grow. The promise of food draws children into classrooms, offering hope for a brighter future.

 

Frank was joined by his wife and fellow author Denise, who wrote a moving poem for the initiative, read aloud by pupils. Reflecting on the campaign, Frank said: “By sharing their pocket money, children in the UK have a simple and joyful way to help hungry children around the world receive the daily school meals they need to learn and thrive.

 

“How empowering for a child to look at a problem and think, ‘I can do something about that.’”

 

For Ivy, a pupil at Nansato Primary School in Malawi, her daily porridge makes a real difference to her performance in school.

 

She says: “Porridge gives me enough energy to learn better. I actively take part in class and the porridge keeps me healthy. If there was no porridge at school, it could have been difficult for me to understand what the teachers teach due to hunger.”

 

Anna Houghton, supporter engagement officer for Liverpool at Mary’s Meals, says: “A big thank you to Frank and Denise for putting on the assemblies at St Paul’s! The children were enthralled by their presentations and left so excited to start a Pocket Money for Porridge collection to help their fellow kids across the world.”

 

Teachers can download a Pocket Money for Porridge fundraising pack, from marysmeals.org.uk/campaigns/pocket money-for-porridge