Students prepare to abseil for charity this weekend

The event will see more than 100 students and members of the wider Leeds community abseil from the top of the 10-storey high Portland Building at the University’s City Campus, on Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 April. The abseil is set to be run by staff from Carnegie Great Outdoors.

Cara McCosh, Senior Project Officer at Leeds Beckett and co-organiser of the abseil, said: “The Great Big Volunteering Abseil is an annual event which gives our students the opportunity to raise money for their chosen charities, bond with their volunteering project teams and challenge themselves. This year, we have more than 100 abseilers and, with each raising a minimum of £50, we’re expecting to be able to give more than £5000 to the charities supported.”

International volunteering projects taking place this year, organised by Leeds Beckett for teams of students and staff, include building playgrounds in Uganda, sports coaching in South Africa, and community development in Ghana.

The student teams will take part on Saturday 25 with additional teams from PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the University of Leeds, and more, joining in on Sunday 26, raising funds for further charities including KickStart Ghana, a sporting and educational charity; the Leeds Children’s Hospital Appeal; and Snehalaya, a women and children’s charity based in India.