A local runner will take on the Sheffield Half Marathon in support of BREADtrust, to raise money for a school-building project in Northern Pakistan.
Mark Willoughby, 40, a senior leader in youth justice from Burngreave, Sheffield, decided to complete this challenge to support education in an area that desperately needs it.
The Jamestown enclave of Rawalpindi, in Northern Pakistan, has an estimated 3,000 residents. It is seeking to transform the area through a 20-year transformation plan for Jamestown led by a strategic partnership for social mobility between BREADtrust and the PFK Group of Churches.
Mr Willoughby highlighted the importance of education: “Education is imperative in the development of any person, being able to read and write effectively, and to understand how systems and processes in the world work, enables you to take opportunities to progress in the world.”
According to UNICEF, Pakistan has an estimated 25.1 million children aged 5-16 not attending school, representing 35 per cent of the total population in this age group.
Having successfully secured land rights and essential utilities, the community is now entering a critical stage in its mission: breaking the cycle of generational poverty through a high-impact educational intervention.
BREADtrust and the PFK Group of Churches aim to prepare 500 young people for higher education within the next 20 years. They estimate this shift will triple average family incomes, fundamentally transforming the community’s economic trajectory.
Mr Willoughby said: “It’s so imperative to this community in Jamestown in the northern part of Rawalpindi because they haven’t had the opportunities that many children have in other parts of the city. And so they are subsequently disadvantaged in terms of what they can go on to do with their lives.”
In January 2026, Mr Willoughby had the opportunity to visit the Jamestown community with members of the BREADtrust board and PFK leaders. He saw the site where the school will be built and how much this project will mean to the community, and how it will impact the life outcomes for the children growing up in this community.
He said: “I was able to understand more of the context in terms of the development needs of the area and the benefit that would come to children and young people through high-quality education being enabled.”
