Toybox urges Government to increase funding to Latin America

|PIC1|Christian charity Toybox submitted a petition to Downing Street on Monday calling on the Government to spend more funding in Latin America.

More than 1,000 people gave their support to the petition over the last four months.

Toybox works to educate and support street children in Guatemala, Bolivia and Peru, home to just some of the 40 million children living and working on the streets of Latin America.

The charity wants an assurance that the UK Government will increase funding to region, which currently receives only one per cent of the total overseas aid budget, or £97 million from a total of £9.1 billion.

Alastair Welford, chair of trustees, and Andy Stockbridge, CEO of Toybox, handed the petition over to a Downing Street official.

“We really welcome the opportunity to draw attention to this very important issue,” said Mr Stockbridge. “Even a small amount of funding can go a very long way in Latin America.”

Mr Welford recently dyed his hair pink and orange – the Toybox colours - to raise awareness of the issue of street children.

He said, “I have just returned from Bolivia where I met so many children on the streets. Our thanks go out to all who signed this petition. Today your voice has brought news of the street children in Latin America to the corridors of power here in the UK. Thank you.”