Far from her Peterborough home, 22-year-old student Meg Burley was wakened by a commotion and looked out of her window to see buildings and vehicles ablaze and rioters throwing rocks.

It was a vivid reminder of the dangers she was facing in a country where thousands of children had seen their parents, families and friends hacked to death in burning villages as tribal and gang warfare threatened to tear the country apart.

But far from being intimidated or overwhelmed by a situation where poverty is so appalling that people have to scavenge through rubbish for food, Meg has decided to put off returning to university next month so she can carry on her compassionate work.

After taking African studies at the University of Birmingham, Meg, of Church Street, Werrington, flew out to Kenya to become a family sponsorship programme co-ordinator with Action for Children in Conflict (AfCiC), in March.

Meg works in Thika, a small town about 40km north of Nairobi, but a day centre which did valuable work in providing a safe environment for street children in which to wash, eat and learn life skills, has closed due to a lack of funding.

It is sorely missed in an area where there is ever present danger, as Meg found out.

Talking to The Evening Telegraph by e-mail, she said: "One day I heard a commotion and looked out of the window to see people fleeing the town, running, screaming and vehicles speeding off.

"People were throwing rocks and setting vehicles and buildings on fire. Within minutes, the military arrived and started firing on the crowd and they soon dispersed.

"I heard the next day that seven people had been killed. It was pretty terrifying.

"Due to the political violence earlier this year, there are hundreds of displaced people who are struggling to survive.

"Many had their homes burned down and they saw their friends and families being hacked to death by machetes. They have lost everything."

In her role with a team of 30, Meg identifies and helps vulnerable families to set up small income-generating activities through the provision of a microloan, with the aim of helping them to be self-sufficient.

She said: "This also stops people from sending their children on to the street in search of food or money.