Wisdom Nursery School was established in 2009 to provide an education for poorer children in the Serrekunda area. Squeezed into a small triangular plot in between high-rise residential buildings it caters for 88 children in 3 classes. Classrooms are very small with very little furniture and are in need of urgent refurbishment. There is no running water so that water, which the school must pay for, has to be carried from a neighbouring compound.

Children attending the school are asked to pay fees and supply their own uniform and books, however only about half of the families can afford to do so and the school therefore has very limited funding.

To support the school over the past few years we paid teacher’s salaries during COVID lockdown in addition to providing reading books, exercise books, pens, pencils and other school equipment. Each year the children also receive Christmas presents.

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.

Thanks Kings Hawford School in Worcester who raised £3000 for us, in July 2022 we started refurbishment of the school. The roof has been replaced, classroom floors have been re-concreted, windows put in classrooms and the front of the school retiled. A water tap has been installed and a canopy to give the children some shade will be built.

Emmanuel, who runs the school writes: ‘On behalf of the management committee and pupils of the school I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for bringing joy and happiness to the school. We are proud that we now have tap water after 14 years of existing. Struggling to get water everyday is over.’

School 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 As a result, many children are withdrawn from school, and to earn money to provide food for the family, have to engage in street trading thus exposing them to a number of risks.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.