“Children taking on that responsibility is really important. It makes me really proud. It’s the kind of thing we want to see in our children.” – Marie Hughes, founder

Working with schools is an essential part of what we do,  making children aware of how charities work, the story behind OSCAR’s, what they can do to help others and why they should.


How we can work with schools

Our Charity Manager, Phil Martinez, is a teacher with 25 years experience and is passionate about sharing the work of the charity with schools.

We offer a number of ways we can work together:

  • Assemblies
  • Fundraising ideas
  • Lessons and workshops
  • Working with School Council or Charity Committee
  • Raising awareness
  • Help organising events
  • Get Active for OSCAR’s
  • Go Orange for OSCAR’s
  • Grow A Pound project

Why should your school get involved?

Find out about the story and the schoolchild that inspired the charity, and how what OSCAR’s can offer to your school community.

Coverage of the York schools who took part in our Go Orange for OSCAR’s days can be found via York Press and That’s TV York


Bootham School

Bootham nominated us as their Charity of the Term in Autumn 2022. They raised money with their 3k run, by Go Orange for OSCAR’s and holding a Christmas Dressing-up Day. They also invited us in to their Volunteers’ Fair to encourage pupils and staff to take part in our events.

So far they have raised over £1100


Wilberfoss Primary

After a Wilberfoss pupil took part in our Inflatable 5k, the rest of the school joined in by nominating us as one of their charities of the year. A Go Orange Day and a World Cup competition and other events, plus staff entering our marathon relay has helped our partnership fundraise over £1500. It was great to visit the wonderful children of Wilberfoss and talk to them in their assembly.


St. Mary's Catholic Academy

As a school affected in the past by brain tumours, we are very grateful to St. Mary’s Catholic Academy in Staffordshire in nominating us as Charity of The Year.

A number of events have helped to raise £500 and our charity manager visited for an online assembly during their Go Orange for OSCAR’s Day.


Huntington Secondary

Huntington have helped us for a number of years. One class nominated us to receive own clothes day money in 2021, about 25 pupils and family members took part in the Inflatable 5k in 2022 and then the school’s Go Orange for OSCAR’s day raised over £600.


Bishopthorpe Infants and Archbishop of York's Juniors

Both of the schools in Bishopthorpe had a Go Orange Day and welcomed our charity manager to their assemblies and their penalty shoot-out competitions. With cake stalls and a cake raffle, the total fundraised for the charity by both schools reached over £600.


Wilberforce House - Pocklington School

Wilberforce House at Pocklington School nominated us as their 2021-22 Charity of the Year. Charity Week at the end of March saw the whole school carry out school fetes, sports events and staff gunging helping to raise funds. These were added to Wilberforce House’s car wash in the snow earlier in the year, as well as proceeds from the whole school summer non-uniform day

We are very grateful to all the staff and pupils for their support and the total of nearly £1500 raised was utterly spectacular!


Dunnington Primary School Staff

Dunnington Primary school community have always held the Hughes Family in their hearts and the support we have received from school staff past and present has been beyond wonderful.

They set themselves the challenge to collectively run or walk all the way from Land’s End to John O’Groats (1,083 miles) and raised over £1400 in the process, tracking their progress as part of a virtual Conqueror Challenge


Antonino Gargiulo

Antonino, a teacher at Dunnington Primary when Milo was going through treatment for his brain tumour missed out on the staff fundraising event, so decided to do his own over the first few months of 2022.

He cycled 1000 miles over 90 days adding in 9000 press-ups and sit-ups for good measure. He raised £360 for OSCARs along with another £200 for another charity close to his heart.


Cuthbert College, Hummersknott Academy, Darlington

Over £630 was raised by Cuthbert College at Hummersknott Academy by selling hot dogs, cakes, raffle tickets and enjoying the hardship of throwing sponges at their head boy.

We were very grateful that they chose us as their charity to fundraise for.


Beverley School

Beverley High School thought of others at Christmas and donated £250 as a result of a charity Christmas Jumper Day. A simple but fantastic way of raising a great amount of money for us.


Royal Grammar School, Worcester

Another school that fundraised for us was the Royal Grammar School in Worcester, managing to raise over £450 from their events.

It is so important to us that schools are involved – our charity was inspired by Oscar’s own fundraising efforts at his school while he was undergoing treatment. Seeing children helping other children is very inspiring.