Haywards Heath eight-year-old raises money for North Korean prisoners

Grace Bryan, who is a student at Harlands Primary School, raised the money at her home with a cake sale and fun day.

Grace said: “I know that I can’t change the world, but I can make a difference.”

She heard about the plight of North Korean Christians at Centre Church in Burgess Hill, where they were told that entire families are imprisoned simply for practising their faith, including the elderly and children.

“It’s one of the worst countries and bad things are happening, they’re put in camps, they’ve got no food, they’re starving and homeless,” Grace explained.

She organised a cake sale at her home in Haywards Heath and so far has raised £400 for Open Doors, a charity that provides aid to the prisoners and the families of those imprisoned unjustly in North Korea.

Her dad, Russ Bryan, explained her motivation: “She heard a talk about North Korea, it moved her because children get sent along with their parents to the labour camp. They are effectively worked and starved to death. As North Korea is a highly secretive state, the world hears little about these people.

“She is a bright girl, but that’s not what makes her unusual. It’s not the amount of money but her compassion for others less fortunate that makes me most proud. It was all her idea. I think fighting against injustice, whatever people’s faith, will become part of her life.”