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IT WAS Oscar and Lucas’s granny, Farmor Lise, who taught them how to make jam, says their mum, Holly Hinz.
During the summer, in Denmark, she showed the boys how to boil fruit and sugar to make mirabelle jam containing plums, apples and elderflowers.
They loved it, and their grandma, so much that when she died in October last year, they decided to make lots of the conserve in her memory.
“The boys wanted to do something special for her,” said Holly.
“And we hit upon the idea of making jam to raise money for equipment that Oscar’s school needed to help support neurodivergent pupils.
“The teachers at Gorse Ride Junior are amazing, and I feel the school is outstanding.
“So we wanted to help them by buying equipment for their SEN department.
“SEN departments everywhere are very short of money, and dependant on EHCP’s (Education, Health and Care Plan) for funding, so we wanted to support local teachers.
“Schools can often afford the basics, like fidget toys, but not specialist items which can be expensive.”
With their mum, Oscar and Lucas made more than 100 pots of jam, raising £700 for the Finchampstead school.
“We’ve been able to buy lots of items for the department, including a bubble tower and story books to help children develop strategies for social interaction.
“The school has housed our equipment in what has become a special sensory room.”
Through their jam-making, Oscar and Lucas were able to provide Gorse Ride with a memory foam rug, relaxation game Mindfulness Stix, a bubble lamp aquarium, a trampoline, a sensory timer, a set of American books called Ninja Hacks especially helpful for neurodivergent children, wall coverings, sensory sequin fabric, projectors for ceiling displays, a door sign, a bookshelf, an armchair, and sensory pads.
“The school has been really grateful, and we’ve been so encouraged by the response to the fundraising effort.
“We’ve had people both locally, and abroad – some of whom we didn’t even know – supporting this project.”
Headteacher of Gorse Ride Junior School, Miss Rogers, said: “We were thrilled to receive a kind donation to the school to support the development of the Zen Den from Oscar and his family.
“Oscar worked hard, along with his younger brother and family, to produce a phenomenal amount of Hygge Jam, which parents and friends of the school kindly purchased.
“Through his fundraising he reached his aspirational target of £700.
“The funds were used to purchase resources and the family also donated some items.
“Oscar’s mum spent a day in school to improve the Zen Den which now looks so inviting.
“It provides a calm and tranquil area for children and there are new resources which can be accessed to support mindfulness, therapeutic play or support children when expressing their feelings.
“It is a real asset to the school and our pupils.”
For information, visit: gorserideschools.co.uk
