Newmarket Holidays sets £11k target to support hygiene scheme in Kenya

Newmarket Holidays plans a fundraising campaign in 2026 to build a rainwater harvesting tank and support hygiene training sessions at a primary school in Kenya.

Through staff-led fundraising activities at the tour operator’s headquarters in Wallington, the team aims to raise £11,000 to support a major water, sanitation and hygiene initiative at Kwakalelo Primary School, Mbeere, which has 249 children and teachers.

A new harvesting tank will collect rainfall from the school roof during the rainy season, providing safe, year-round access to water for pupils and teachers.

The school previously relied on a local well, but climate change has caused it to dry up. The school uses plastic tanks to collect rainwater but these only capture a fraction of what is needed each day.

Newmarket will also fund the construction of handwashing stations, reinforcing positive hygiene practices through peer-to-peer learning sessions that encourage children to wash their hands after using the bathroom and before eating.

Furthermore, the fundraising will support menstrual hygiene training for girls, alongside awareness-building sessions for boys designed to break down gender taboos.

Mr Munuve, deputy headteacher at the school, said: “Our children cannot fully concentrate in class without sufficient water to sustain them in school. It is very challenging to face the dry seasons knowing that there is no water to drink.

“When children don’t have enough water to drink at the school, they often have less concentration in class, fuelling poor performance and too much strain for the pupils.”

Charlotte Cox, sustainability manager at Newmarket Holidays, commented: “Children will be able to spend more time in school, educational achievement will improve, and hygiene-related illness will reduce dramatically.

“In the long term, families will also benefit as medical expenses decrease. This is a simple but incredibly effective way of improving wellbeing, dignity and opportunity for the whole community.”

The Kenya project marks the second time Newmarket Holidays has supported a school, following a 2023 initiative to improve latrine and handwashing facilities at a school in Nicaragua.

It forms part of the operator’s Travel For Good mission, which commits the business to reducing carbon and creating a positive impact in the communities that welcome its worldwide tours.