Where Does the Fundraising Money Go?

We are thrilled to have been able to raise £8,500 from the 2014 project. That money is being put to fantastic use in The Gambia. Here are some of the current developments taking place:

• Now that the 4th classroom is completed, work is starting on the stairway that will lead up to the 5th classroom.

• Pica, is overseeing the building a medical centre in Abuko village and Team Gambia member Wendy O’Hagan and her daughter gave money to this project. In addition Pete Evans gave a lorry load of gravel to the medical centre building project (originally it had been delivered to the school for the staircase but it was the wrong grade of gravel).

• As well as the resources we carried over in our suitcases and gave to the nursery and the lower basic school, we were able to buy them 100 packets of paper for photocopying their examinations in 2014/15.

• We also purchased a number of big plastic bins and disinfectant as one of the lines of defence should Ebola reach The Gambia.

• We have employed a local artist to paint the nursery walls with colourful letters and numbers.
Development doesn't stop, but it's good to see what the money we raise - together with the fantastic fundraising effort made by Pete Evans and Hamstead Hall School - is being used for.

Keep checking back for more updates...

Building Work Steps Up

The Team Gambia Project set up by Hamstead Hall School is about providing an education to kids who would otherwise not be going to school at all. Of course, that is not just about providing teachers and resources - the school had to be built first and Pete Evans from Hamstead Hall School has been instrumental in getting this school built and developed.

Development continues with more building work taking place and more resources sent out. Progress with the Team Gambia Project during the last 12 months includes:

• The fourth classroom is completed. A new teacher has been employed and more pupils are now being taught.

• The shipping container sent out by Team Gambia 2013 arrived and the table, chairs and other resources are being used.

• The tablet computers donated by Hamstead Hall School on the December 2013 visit have been set up as a computer room and are being used.

• The container that we fundraised to buy in 2013 was filled and shipped over and is now in place beside the lower basic school. There is still quite a bit of materials in it to be distributed.

• The nursery school looked great. It has been whitewashed and the Wendy house and swings put up in the yard.

Recruiting for Team Gambia 2015!

Following the success of Team Gambia 2013 and Team Gambia 2014, we are now recruiting for Team Gambia 2015!

For the last two years the College has joined a project set up by Hamstead Hall School to fundraise and volunteer at a school in Africa. In 2013 a small group of students travelled to the Jemus Jungkung Jammeh Memorial Nursery School with students from Hamstead Hall School, to volunteer and teach the kids, while also raising £2,500 for the school.

In 2014, a larger group of students undertook the trip and this time without students from Hamstead Hall, who instead visited at a different time of year. With more students to fundraise an amazing £8,500 was raised for the school and the students also gave up a week of their time to work with the Gambian children and give them much needed attention.

We want to do it all over again in 2015. Current Year 12 students can find out more about this exciting opportunity by attending one of two introductory meetings on Tuesday 27 January at 1.45pm or Thursday 5 February at 12.35pm. Both meetings take place in 201. The meeting will show students what they can expect from the trip to Gambia and what we will be expecting of them before they go.
Fundraising is a massive part of the project, so we will be expecting students to work independently or as part of a team to raise money during the Spring and Summer terms, as well as when they return into Year 13 next Autumn.

Why is this worth doing? Our students who travelled to The Gambia in 2014 can attest to what a wonderfully life enhancing experience it is. However, commitment to a charity project like this is also a fantastic thing to be able to tell employers and universities about and will really set students apart from the crowd.

Any current Year 12 student at the College who wants to find out more is urged to come along to the meeting to find out more. Places are limited, so any student who is interested will need to act fast.