Last year, for the colder season, I ended up favouring ankle boots, as they look great with pretty much every outfit.

This year, I got my hands on a pair of Clarks African Ice ankle boots from Clarks Soul of Africa range in dark brown, to keep that habit going.

From around October until around March every year, you will find me in boots, so it is very important that the boots are comfortable and durable.

These Clarks African Ice boots have a great colour – I usually go for black but this very dark brown is a great (also neutral) alternative if you, like me, have lots of black pairs.

The upper is in oiled dark brown leather with elasticated sides, man made balance, some leather lining and rubber soles. The heel is stacked, chunky and 7cm high, a very reasonable height for every day.

They are very comfortable and for me, great value for money.

However, the best feature on these boots is the fact they also help people: Clarks Soul of Africa range carries the “aid through trade” message.

The shoes are made in Africa, using high quality leather and generating fairly paid jobs for women (mainly), helping them support their families.

Soul of Africa transfers to the trust the margin between the production cost and the trade selling price of their shoes. The money is then used to fund various projects to help children orphaned by HIV/Aids in Africa.

Find out more about Soul of Africa here – they have helped more than 10,000 orphans since their launch in 2003.

Clarks is their biggest supporter in the UK and transfers and extra £3 per Soul of Africa pair sold.

So it is not just a lovely pair of shoes, it is and extra help to those who need – not only through financial aid, but also generating jobs. Really, as they say, shoes with a soul.

Clarks also has a fantastic range of ankle boots and other shoes, well worth a look. At the moment, there is a fabulous sale on, still on time for Christmas!

You can get the lovely African Ice ankle boots for £59.99, as well as other Soul of Africa shoes for Clarks, from the Clarks website or in their shops around the country.

This post contains PR samples. This review, however, is based on my experience with the product and reflects my honest opinion on them.