A HAWORTH girl and her mother travelled to Kenya to film a challenging report for this week’s Comic Relief TV fundraiser.

Ellie Dimbleby, 12, and mum Cheryl, 40, saw at first-hand the lives of people in need in the East African country.

The pair experienced the daily life of a family living in extreme poverty in Nairobi and learned how UK donations could help the Comic Relief charity support them.

Ellie and Cheryl met 50-year-old Irene and her granddaughter, Lynette, 12, who both work on Dandora rubbish dump, collecting glass and plastic to sell for pennies to feed their family and pay rent for their hut.

Ellie and Cheryl will share the family’s story during a BBC appeal film on Red Nose night, tomorrow (March 24), from 7pm, and today will chat through their trip on children’s programme Blue Peter.

Ellie, who attends Parkside School in Cullingworth, said that before the trip she did not know what to expect.

She said: “I knew it would be emotional seeing the way people live, but it was more eye-opening than I ever could’ve imagined.”

Touched by the lives of Irene and Lynette, Ellie and Cheryl were keen to find out more about a project that supported families such as them.

Mother and daughter visited Pendekezo Letu, an organisation that works with some of the poorest children and families in Kenya, getting children into school and giving skills and business training to parents so they can set up on their own.

Ellie said: “The children greeted us with singing and it was the complete opposite to the sadness we witnessed at Dandora, so it was really uplifting to see how much Comic Relief has changed their lives. It really made it hit home how important donations are.”

This week Ellie and Cheryl will help Comic Relief encourage Yorkshire people to once again help raise money and change lives, both in the UK and in some of the world’s poorest communities.

Last Red Nose Day, in 2015, the region raised and donated more than £2.1million.

Ellie’s school, Parkside, is a strong supporter of Comic Relief, and students and staff were this week organising several fundraising activities.

School head Andy Taylor said: “We’re incredibly proud of Ellie for being so brave and coping with what she’s seen in Nairobi.

“She has been fantastic at feeding back her experiences to the school and it’s been a brilliant learning experience for all of our students at Parkside.”

Ellie and Cheryl are also receiving ongoing support from Comic Relief to process and cope with their experiences in Nairobi.

* Are you staging fundraising activities for Comic Relief? Don't forget to e-mail details and photos to alistair.shand@keighleynews.co.uk.