For the 11th consecutive year Anglia Ruskin staff and students are setting off for the annual journey to Croatia. They will spend two weeks living, working and experiencing life in two Croatian hospitals for children and young adults with learning disabilities.

For the second year running there will be a web blog with regular updates to give a feel of what's being achieved this year and a taste of the hard work but good fun that is so much a part of Mission Croatia. There will also be a gallery of images - probably including the annual dunking of staff member Paul Ingle in the sea and lots of students covered in dust and paint!

Since 1997, successive groups of students have joined Mission Croatia and have cleaned, plastered, rubbed down, dug, painted, cleared and decorated. Previously derelict areas are now not only usable but also cheerful and fun for both clients and staff. Much of the materials and equipment used is donated or bought in this country and sent out via a lorry convoy but the group also brave the Croatian equivalent of B&Q and purchase materials locally which also benefits the local economy. As a result of the annual trips by Anglia Ruskin and other charitable organisations, the hospital in Kraljevica now has a hydrotherapy pool and sensory room, large day room and school area, new wards with sea views and a range of murals and brightly decorated areas. This is so important for the clients - it's so much more than a hospital, it's their home!

Students not only spend time on the fabric of the building but also with the clients for whom one to one contact and play may be a rare luxury. For many students the friendships formed with the children and adults at the hospitals have proved the most important part of the project. There is always much excitement and a rousing greeting waiting for the group on arrival.

The second hospital visited each year is Stancic, the largest hospital for learning disabilities in Croatia. The physical work decorating the large Victorian wards, public areas, refurbishing fire escapes etc is always hard, but equally challenging is the reality of life in a large Eastern European hospital without all the facilities that are now available at the smaller more homely Kraljevica.

Students often describe this two-week trip as "life changing", enduring friendships and relationships are formed.

Please visit the Blog - we're proud of Mission Croatia and want to share the experience with you!