Children continue teacher's charity legacy

Assistant teacher Angie Smith had a passion for charity work

Pupils at a primary school near Carlisle are collecting old clothes to honour the memory of an assistant teacher with a passion for charity fundraising.

Angie Smith died suddenly just before Christmas at the age of 53.

Over the last 18 years collections, supervised by Ms Smith, have raised around £50,000 for the Great North Air Ambulance (GNAAS).

Now youngsters at Fir Ends School in Smithfield say they are determined to keep up her good work.

Fir Ends Primary pupils load bags of clothes onto a van for the Great North Air Ambulance collection

Bin bags full of clothes are collected three times a year and transported by a cattle trailer to recycling centres across the north of England.

Head teacher Daryl Spencer said that while Ms Smith raised money for many local charities, the air ambulance collection was particularly close to her heart.

"It was an ideal opportunity to catch up for a chat with everyone in the wider community when they were dropping off.

"She took great pride in the success of 'her' collections and was the person who decided we could probably fill three vans a year - and she was right!"

More than 1,200 kilos of clothes were gathered during the last collection.

In 2021, the school was treated to a flypast by the GNAAS helicopter Pride of Cumbria.

"In a rural community like ours, the air ambulance is appreciated, particularly by those whose work involves being in remote areas that a normal ambulance would be unable to reach," said Mr Spencer.

Over the last 20 years, GNAAS has responded to more than 23,500 incidents across the region. The service says last year was its busiest on record, with over 2,000 call-outs.