Cheltenham College is proud to support the local Cheltenham community of which it is a part. We encourage our pupils to see themselves as not only a part of this wider Cheltenham community but also the community at home.

During lockdown one of our pupils, Avani, was made aware through her family of local farmers that were struggling to sell produce due to the lockdown. They were recieving little help from the government in India. Avani wanted to be able to support those affected.

“I have been working on a project related to farmer distress during COVID-19. I worked alongside a few farmer families who have been affected by the agricultural and industrial slow down. Due to the lockdown and breakdown in supply chains and reduction of consumer consumption, their perishable produce went to waste. Due to this they lost money and their primary source of income. They expressed their emotions of frustration through dumping vegetables like tomatoes, on a highway in Hisar, Haryana. 

I wanted to learn more about what they were going through and decided to try and raise money for the families through my love of art. The artwork I have created to raise funds for the families are ceramic tomatoes. They represent families with two bigger tomatoes as the adults and the smaller tomatoes as the children in the family. Together I hope we can provide them with hope and support for the future. A small gesture goes a long way especially in these trying times. Even though not all of us can do great things, we can all do small things in great love.”

Avani, College pupil. 

Avani has been working to develop her own website that she is able to show her work on. Please click here to view it. She hopes to encourage her peers and artistic community at College to sell their art with the profits going to the farmers in India.

A huge congratulations to Avani for seeing a need and finding a way to support it.