STUDENTS at Bayview College have created a ‘Reverse Advent Calendar’ basket for parents, staff, and students to donate goods for those in need.

The basket sits in the school’s front office with a list of pantry foods, and hygiene and sanitation products that will be donated to the the Salvation Army for distribution.

Year 11 and 12 VCAL students Jorja Holt, Bri Noske, Michaella Bohn, Annalise Outtram and Bella Maclean were assigned to take on a community project through their studies.

“In the personal development skills, we did a ‘helping the local community’ project,” Bri said.

“The girls all decided on the Salvation Army to volunteer our time, because it helps out a lot in our community and with our school values of helping others and realising the classroom extends beyond the school walls.”

The girls have taken on this project while the boys studying VCAL  are organising a separate community project encouraging others to clean up on the Great South West Walk, and will be cleaning up themselves.

The Reverse Advent Calendar project began last month and has since received plenty of donations from the Bayview College community.

“We had to talk to our teacher Miss (Rose) Porter, and then we had to contact the Salvation Army,” Jorja said of getting organised for the project.

“We had a little meeting with them, and we talked about what we were going to do,” she said.

To raise some cash, the group organised a casual day at the school, where students were instructed to dress in the colour red, and the team raised nearly $200.

The girls will be passing on the basket of goods before graduation on November 25, and so the community has until then to make donations.

“This was definitely a rewarding task and we had a lot of fun,” Bri said.

“We’re glad we could make a difference in the community and for the Salvation Army.”