August 2007 – Hand Made Carpets, RugMark licensee and second biggest importer of rugs in the UK, has a special relationship with their suppliers that goes far beyond the usual business relationship. In India they have partnered with their supplier to build, and fund a girls' schools which now educates 1,200 girls in the traditional rug making area, and in Pakistan they run a village dispensary with the help of their supplier there.

It has been a very hectic year for Hand Made Carpets, as Paul Walker, Managing Director and RugMark Board member explains: "Regarding our own school project, we have constructed 5 new classrooms and installed a generator and battery to power lights and fans in all the classrooms.

Also we have set up a new computer room with 5 workstations, and taken on new staff to train the pupils in computers. We have created a website for the school, and hope that we can open lines of communication to people who are interested.

All of this was possible as we raised approximately £30,000 from independent donations last year, and it looks as though we will secure another £9000 before the year end. This has been earmarked for more classrooms, vocational training equipment such as sewing machines, more computers and the addition of sports equipment and playground equipment."