Stories/Case studies

"Pedro” and Marilene

TPL has been a great partner to the Good Shepherd Project (GSP). The local council funds some of our workers, but by no means all of them. One of our workers who depends on funding from the UK, including funding from TPL, is the overall project coordinator, Lucas. Lucas has been key to our work in many ways.

Through one of our community programmes, “Pedro”, 11 years old, has learned to read and write, giving him a chance to break out of the cycle of poverty he and others face.

As well as our programmes, the profile of GSP in the community means we are sought out by those who have fallen through the net and are desperate. Recently an 83-year-old lady, Marilene, came to Lucas desperate for help. Her house was literally falling down around her. She was confined mainly to her tiny bedroom. Her bathroom had fallen away in bad weather, and her kitchen was about to do the same.

Marilene washed by pouring cold water over herself in her crumbling kitchen. She confided that she feared the house falling on top of her on a windy night but was loathe to seek help. Her grown-up children were unwilling or unable to help her. She lacked all but the basics and was eating whatever neighbours and friends were able to spare her. Lucas started visiting her, helping with food and medicines, but also just treating her as a human worthy of respect and love. Lucas is well-respected by the local council and was able to pressure them till they eventually took action. She has now been moved temporarily for her safety. Lucas continues to pressure the council as they look for the next step.

Without the support of TPL and others, we would not have the ability to be present in the community, helping those who have been missed by the authorities. We believe in treating all with dignity and compassion, and the availability of our staff allows people like “Pedro” and Marilene to be looked after and given a second chance.

Introducing our Young Magician: Amaira

Breathe Arts Health Research were delighted to receive support from Transforming People's Lives. They have helped fund a place on our Breathe Magic Intensive Therapy Programme, providing over 60 hours of life-changing therapy to young people with a condition called hemiplegia, delivered through specially designed magic tricks. This unique, research-led intervention improves hand function, independence, and confidence, while connecting children and their families to a lifelong community.

Hear directly from our Young Magician, Amaira, who benefitted from your support this year:

‘Hi, I'm Amaira, I attended the Breathe Magic Intensive Therapy Programme in Summer 2025. I came on the programme with the aim of achieving these goals, Crocheting, Tying my shoelaces and knots and opening packets like crisps by myself.

I wanted to do those things as I won’t have someone to help me all my life so if I could just do them it would really help. If I can do one thing it will build onto other things I might have to do in the future.

Sometimes when I try these things, they make me feel a bit frustrated because my friends can do all the things I can't do. We have this club at school called Yarn Club and everyone is busy making stuff and I haven't even done one thing yet.

It feels good to be doing magic as it helps both hands get stronger and it is a surprise for the people watching and seeing them happy is the best part. I love everything about magic camp! I have made new friends, and it is good to have new friends with similar experiences to me.

My mum thinks my hands are getting better and that I can do things I couldn’t before. I can do this!

She gets surprised when I do tricks, I think she’s impressed and it makes me feel happy because it has not only impressed her, but it impressed me too.

I am now looking forward to yarn club as its going to be fun and not frustrating, they will be surprised as I couldn’t do it before and now I can!

Thank you so much to everyone for their support and kindness!’

The Falconer Trust

The Falconer Trust is a small Norfolk-based charity, set up in 1980 to support the work of the Falconer Children’s Home and Orphanage, situated in a remote location in the North Western province of Zambia. The Home cares for about sixty children of all ages. It receives no government funding, and is almost entirely reliant on what the Falconer Trust is able to send.

The Falconer Trust is funded mainly by donations from individuals and churches, and occasionally organisations such as Rotary Clubs. This money is used for the daily needs of the Home – food, clothing, medicines etc., and also for projects aimed at improving the living conditions for the children. There are two ongoing projects which are particularly important; first building a dormitory to provide accommodation for around sixteen girls. This building will have eight bedrooms, a toilet and shower area, a social area and a small kitchen. At the time of writing, the walls have been built, the roof is in progress, and all internal work is yet to be done. When completed, the dormitory will provide the girls with a sense of dignity and self-worth, improving greatly on the cramped and extremely basic conditions in which they currently live.

The Falconer Home owns a large area of farmland a few miles away, and this is the location of the other ongoing project. Much of southern Africa has been subject to severe drought in recent years, and to combat this the Home is installing an irrigation system. This will enable them to grow large quantities of maize, which is needed to make nshima, their staple diet. They can also grow a variety of vegetables, enabling them to feed the children and also sell produce to generate an income for the Home. The aim is that in the coming years the Falconer Home will become more self-sufficient, and less reliant on support from the UK.

Where possible, the Falconer Trust aims to fund young people leaving the Home through further study. In recent years we have financed young people in training in agriculture, nursing, teaching and administration. This is only possible with the support of TPL.

Transforming People’s Lives has in recent years made an invaluable contribution to funding the work of the Home through the Falconer Trust. We are extremely grateful for the grants received from TPL, which are having a transformative effect of the children and young people who live at the Falconer Home, giving them real hope for the future.

Neil Starling, Trust Manager
The Falconer Trust

www.thefalconertrust.org.uk