St Peter’s Nursery School
St Peter’s Nursery School has 235 children and is located
in Lamin on the site of St Peter’s Basic Cycle and Secondary Schools, which
have 3,000 students. Although the Basic Cycle School is run by the Catholic
Mission and is part funded by The Gambian Government, Secondary School and
Nursery School parents have to pay fees.
The Nursery School has 5 classes each with almost 50
children crowded in, and parents pay fees of £30-£40 per year. In addition to
these fees parents have to pay for uniform and supply all the stationery and
books needed for school. Many parents cannot afford to pay the fees so the
children either stop attending school or they attend but the school receives no
money for them. This means that the school has very few resources, cannot
afford to employ more teachers or do any much-needed repair work to the school.
To support the school over the
past few years we paid teacher’s salaries during COVID lockdown in addition to providing
reading books, handwriting books, pens, pencils and other school equipment. We
have also provided new desks and chairs, replaced a leaking roof, put new
windows into the very hot and dark classrooms, replaced the school fence and
built a brick wall to separate 2 classrooms. Each year the children also
receive Christmas shoeboxes.
During our last visit to The Gambia a team of adult volunteers and students from The Royal School Wolverhampton engaged the children in a range of activities and games. We also started to paint and decorate the school which will continue to do on future visits.
Feeding Programme
The school serves a very poor community so many of the
children arrive at school hungry because their families do not have enough
income to provide even the barest minimum of food. As a result, many children
are withdrawn from school, and to earn money to provide food for the family,
have to engage in street trading thus exposing them to a number of risks.
The programme provides these children with a daily
nutritious meal, ensuring their attendance at school and safeguarding them from
the risks of being on the streets.
A donation of:
·
£2 provides a school meal each day for a month
for one child.
·
£10 provides a school meal each day for a month
for 5 children.
·
£20 provides a school meal each day for a month
for 10 children.
·
£24 provides a school meal each day for a year
for one child.
Donations can be made
through this website via the Charities Aid Foundation icon on the home page.
