Bristol: St Bede's College hosts Kenyan charity rugby tour

Shamas rugby players

St Bede's Catholic College in Bristol, is hosting a group of Kenyan boys on a rugby tour with a difference.

The party of 12 and 13 year olds is staying with parents of pupils at St Bede's Catholic College for eight days of their visit, which has been organised by the Shamas Rugby Foundation.

The charity uses the values of rugby to teach life skills to boys and girls living in the slums of Kenya's capital and largest city, Nairobi.

Many of the 22 boys live in settlements suffering from high unemployment, lacking basic services and amenities. A number of them have been turned away from school as their families have been unable to pay the fees. Yet they each have ambition to be successful in life; it maybe that trips like this and Rugby could help them realise that success.

They are accompanied on the visit by two of their teachers along with the foundation's head of operations, Will Ferguson.

As well as playing in rugby tournaments and matches against local independent schools, the Kenyan side will play a floodlit match against St Bede's Year 8s at Gordano Rugby Club, and have a chance to train with coaches from Bristol Rugby's academy and watch Bristol's first XV take on London Scottish on Friday.

They will visit local sights such as the Clifton Suspension Bridge, the ss Great Britain and Bristol Zoo. They will also join pupils at St Bede's for their lessons and have specially designed lessons in science, art and design and technology.

Mr Tom Luke, head of rugby and sports coach at St Bede's, who enjoyed a professional career with Bristol, Cornish Pirates and Doncaster Knights, said: "Rugby is the fastest growing sport in Kenya and its sevens team has been very successful in recent years.

"We are delighted to be welcoming the boys here. It is humbling when you hear their life stories and this will be the first time anyone of them has been abroad. We are looking forward to some friendly and competitive matches during their stay. St. Bede's ambition is to become a centre of excellence for rugby and our involvement in this is only one of many projects to help us establish ourselves successful on the rugby platform".

Catherine Hughes, principal at St Bede's Catholic College, adds: "We are privileged and proud to be able to host the boys from the Shamas Rugby Foundation. I'm sure this week will be hugely beneficial in all sorts of ways not only for the Kenyan boys, but also for our young people. Working with and learning from a group of contemporaries who are growing up in very different circumstances will be hugely grounding for our youngsters. I am particularly grateful to our families who have opened their homes to the boys during their stay in Bristol. This generosity is enormously appreciated."

Will Ferguson works as a physiotherapist in Nairobi. "There are many charities that use sport as a tool to help disadvantaged children," he says.

"Those that have played rugby will understand the special bond that develops between players, and for me no other sport emphasises teamwork quite like rugby. At Shamas we are in a privileged position to go much deeper than sport and to help our children face up to the realities of poverty."