A CHARITY tour which came to Gloucestershire will be broadcast on CBBC this evening.

14 boys were flown to England by the OSCAR Foundation last October where they took part in a football match at Beaudesert Park School in Minchinhampton.

BAFTA award winning production company, Drummer TV, was commissioned by CBBC to film the My Life: Mumbai Street Strikers documentary which will be aired at 5.30pm.

The documentary starts in the slum area of Mumbai and follows their journey to Beaudesert, sightseeing in London and visiting Manchester United footballer Juan Mata at Old Trafford.

Throughout 2017 the staff and pupils at Beaudesert Park School worked tirelessly to raise funds for the OSCAR Foundation UK Schools Tour, including dribbling a football a staggering 4,353 miles, the distance from Minchinhampton to Mumbai. The last mile was dribbled by former England goalkeeper, David Seaman and Forest Green Rovers players.

OSCAR is a charity based in Mumbai, which empowers and educates children across India through football. Poor children living in the slums and on the streets are invited to take part in the many educational and sporting programmes provided by OSCAR, as long as they go to school.

Lucinda Sowerbutts, from Frampton Mansell, is a Patron for the charity. She initially came across the foundation whilst volunteering in Mumbai in 2015. Struck by OSCAR’s work she decided to organise the two week football and education tour to the UK. 

A former parent of Beaudesert Park School, Lucinda is delighted to see Beaudesert feature on our TV screens.

"This project was my baby," she said. "I remember sitting on the plane on the way home and I was determined to make this tour happen.

"It was really complicated applying for passports because some of the boys did not have birth certificates.

"The tour was very much a Gloucestershire grown initiative. Steppes Travel from Cirencester provided a coach for two weeks and Renewable Design Company provided their passports.

After the success of the boy’s tour, OSCAR is planning the #kicklikeagirl tour in October. Fourteen girls from the Mumbai slums and Jharkhand, the poorest state in India, will be hosted by The Cheltenham Ladies’ College, Malvern College and St Mary’s Calne.

Lucinda added: "For poor Indian families to allow their girls to go to school and to travel is a massive step forward. They are all too often illegally married at 14, which leads to early pregnancies and school drop outs."

"Once again the local Gloucestershire community has rallied together to fundraise. Football legend, Tony Adams held a charity football training session for 40 young Gloucestershire footballers, Steppes Travel in Cirencester has pledged to supply the transportation for the tour and organised the OSCAR flights and plenty of kids across are busy running, hiking, swimming and many other activities to raise funds for the tour."