Sir, I am pleased to give readers an update to my article in the BDJ in 2007 giving an insight into my experiences working for the Northern Cleft Foundation (NCF).1 The charity has been travelling around India for the last 13 years and has grown in size to include clinicians that normally form part of the cleft multidisciplinary team.

The fundraising for this year's trip took a slight twist on the previous five years. We developed a new website (https://doi.org/www.northerncleftfoundation.co.uk) and also created Facebook and Twitter accounts to improve our online profile and to create awareness of the trip. International charities such as SEWA UK (https://doi.org/www.sewauk.org) have also rallied to our cause to raise money.

I travelled with my friend and fellow registrar in oral and maxillofacial surgery, Chris Sweet, and we were overwhelmed that the team this year had grown to 48! This included a mix of surgical, anaesthetic, ward and specialist cleft nursing and recovery staff. When we arrived in Nagpur, the local Indian Rotary Club of Nagpur West had worked relentlessly for ten months prior to us arriving distributing leaflets in a radius of 500 km to recruit patients. Ten days of back-to-back operating for approximately 12 hours each day ensued under the supervision of Miss Beale and Misters Penfold, Drake, Van Eeden and Russell.

The aim of the charity has always been to provide quality, safe surgery, and not to operate on large volumes of patients at lower standards. Our final tally included 121 cases successfully treated; the youngest patient was three months of age and the oldest a gentleman in his sixties who worked as a caretaker at a school.

For those who wish to help with our cause, or who would even like to come and help next year, then please visit our website, as above. Our latest video for this camp can be found on YouTube by searching for Northern Cleft Foundation. Alternatively, just press 'like' on our Facebook page and follow our progress.

We would like to thank Dr George, Dr Venkat, all the cleft surgeons from the UK and all the 48 members of the NCF 2013 camp that worked relentlessly to provide a brighter future for those who thought it was beyond their reach. We of course must also extend our sincere thanks to all of the individuals who made generous donations to the Foundation.