What is sponsored? Where does my money go?

Staff:

• Salary and training costs of Teachers, Caretaker, Headteacher, Classroom Assistants and Security.

Equipment:

• School books and stationery
• Teaching aids
• Classroom furniture

Health:

• Most of the children come from families with no budget for medicine. We have set aside £1.00 per child per month for medicines, to be administered in school and arranged by the school when necessary.

How did we get here?

There have been 3 phases so far:

Phase 1: From 2013-2015, initial fundraising allowed the first build team of 29 volunteers to break ground and help construct a 3-classroom block, a clean water well, admin block and a toilet block.

Phase 2: The school opened with 50 pupils following a town-wide ceremony in October 2015. Pupils come from poor families close to the school. The head teacher is Togolese and the school operates in French only.

Phase 3: From 2016-2017, the second build team of 30 volunteers and their friends, raised funds for and helped build the second 3-classroom block. Whilst building they met the first 100 pupils.

Phase 4: From 2018-2019, the third build team of 30 volunteers and their friends, raised funds for and helped build the large hall. Whilst building they were able to see the thriving school with four of the six classrooms in use.

Phase 5: Concentrate on growing the number of sponsors and continue to fund a school running at full capacity! COVID had little impact on the school but did affect our ability to travel. We are now considering how to expand the school along with additional needs for security (fencing).

Who is the school for?

The church with which we have connected in nearby Laffiabougou has committed to uphold the values and ethos of this Christian School. Commitment to the children trapped by poverty in Sabaribougou, Kodeni needs integrity and determination on the ground. Everyone wants their child to be in an excellent free school but this school is for poor children living in Kodeni. The school governance team visited a family on the main road prior to the school opening. They had a car and good employment and were persuaded to remove their 2 children from the roll to make way for 2 poor children.

Who are the School Governance Team?

The governance team comes from Laffiabougou Church. One of the team is responsible for state secondary education in the Region, another has a role in administration of church primary schools across the Region. The team has a high level of competence and the school is properly government registered, participates in the state certified examination system and already benefits from state free school meal provision. Registration for this normally takes several years.

Head teacher Pascal was previously the star player in another local school staff team. Pascal does not speak any of the local languages. Everything in school is conducted in French, youngsters quickly gain fluency. Without fluent French, future employment options are very limited.