The Right Way to do Charity | U&i Global

Our CEO Sarah got speaking to the team over at U&i Global this week about how special Sparkle is and how it came to be. We thought we’d share a snippet here for you – read more on U&i’s website below.

What is the right way to do charity? It is a strange thought. Surely all charity is good, right? But not necessarily. Often, we can do more harm than good when we give without thinking about what people need. When we listen to communities first, and help to support them in creating the solutions they ask for, change can become sustainable and truly meaningful.



For anyone who wants to build a better future, you have to do your research.

Not only personal research, but also ask people in the field.


This position has really restored my faith in humanity. There are so many wonderful people on the ground who are a wealth of knowledge who can help and guide you.


Also, understand the why. There are so many people who have great ideas, but if you don’t get the why, it won’t be sustainable. The why makes all the difference. As long as you stick by that and have a core set of values, then you can’t go wrong. People are chasing 000’s, but we also need to redefine what success look likes.


At The Sparkle Foundation, success doesn’t look like the amount of money we raise, it’s about the number of lives that we change. That must be at the centre of the why.

Spark to Success: How Tailoring Training Is Empowering Women in Malawi

By Talhia Le Berre • June 16, 2026
In the village of Sakata, in Zomba District, Malawi, sixteen women are bent over sewing machines, measuring, cutting, threading, and stitching. What they are creating is more than clothing. They are building futures. This is The Sparkle Foundation's tailoring skills training programme, one of the first initiatives to launch under Spark to Success, a powerful two year partnership with NAMA Women Advancement , a UAE-based organisation dedicated to advancing women's economic participation and building resilient communities worldwide.
Volunteer Leith with a local woman at a community water pump in Malawi, during her Journey with Pur

Leith: From a Chance Meeting to a Life-Changing Journey

By Talhia Le Berre • May 21, 2026
Perth teacher Leith travelled to Malawi as a first-time volunteer with The Sparkle Foundation and came home changed. Read her story.

Stuart: From Legacy to Lived Experience

By Talhia Le Berre • April 27, 2026
For over ten years, The Payback Time Trust has supported The Sparkle Foundation, a relationship first led by Stuart Barcock’s late father, Peter, alongside his stepmother, Kathy, who were early believers in Sparkle’s vision. While Stuart had long been aware of and connected to Sparkle through this relationship, his involvement deepened significantly after becoming a Trustee in early 2023. Since then, his connection to the charity has been more direct and engaged, shaped through ongoing conversations, updates, and a growing understanding of our work. This year, that connection took on a different form. Stuart travelled to Malawi this past March to experience our work in person. Not as an observer from afar, but as someone stepping directly into the environments, communities, and programmes his family family had supported for so long. This is the story of Stuart's journey with purpose. What I Thought I Knew Having supported The Sparkle Foundation for more than a decade, the decision to visit Malawi felt both natural and necessary. From the perspective of The Payback Time Trust, it was important that one of us saw the work first-hand, to understand not only what is being delivered but how it comes together on the ground. Reports and conversations provide insight, but they inevitably leave gaps. Being there, physically present, offers a different level of clarity . There was also a personal dimension to the trip. The trust itself was founded by my [late] father and stepmother, who had been early supporters of The Sparkle Foundation and a strong believers in [founder] Sarah’s vision. Continuing that connection is something I take seriously, and this visit felt like an extension of that responsibility, as well as a way of honouring what they had helped to start.