NEW APPEAL: JTT Nursery School, Talinding
A personal message from Kira Dalton, April 2010
I first visited JTT Nursery in Talinding at the request of Aris and Nigel Harrison-Price who had been supporting the school for a number of years, from 2005 onwards. You can see details of their wonderful efforts on the Pageant Charity web site.
Unfortunately, Aris had stopped getting any reports from the school and, being unable to travel herself for health reasons, asked that we have a look to see whether or not the school or any of the equipment was even still there.
We found 134 children, aged from 3 to 7 years, crammed into a single tiny room. Janko, the head teacher, and his assistant Natoma were doing their level best to try to control and teach all these toddlers despite deafening noise, stifling heat and hardly enough room to move within one cramped little classroom.
The various equipment Aris had provided, including some extra desks, were still there, but in storage next door as there was literally not room to put them inside without pushing the children outdoors! The play area was also tiny and woefully inadequate. There was no room within the compound for any expansion.We quickly concluded, and communicated to Aris, that the only way forward for the benefit of these children was to close this school and relocate everybody to more conducive surroundings nearby.
After several weeks searching in the immediate vicinity, we found a wonderful large compound owned by the Gibba family. We took Mr. Gibba to visit our Kunta Kinteh nursery and he was readily persuaded to agree to lease us half of his land to build similar facilities for a new nursery school for Talinding.
Within days of signing a 10 year lease, Fanding and Modou (the master builder who constructed Kunta Kinteh School, Jappineh Nursery etc) had marshalled a local willing building team. In just four days they had cleared the land, relocated the old "shower" area and were well on the way to completing the making of 3,000 blocks ready to start the walls of a three classroom school block. I have no doubt that by the time I return in two weeks, the walls will be at roof height!
Our plan is to complete building work prior to the rainy season and have the new school furnished, painted and fully equipped by the start of the new term in September.
I first visited JTT Nursery in Talinding at the request of Aris and Nigel Harrison-Price who had been supporting the school for a number of years, from 2005 onwards. You can see details of their wonderful efforts on the Pageant Charity web site.
Unfortunately, Aris had stopped getting any reports from the school and, being unable to travel herself for health reasons, asked that we have a look to see whether or not the school or any of the equipment was even still there.
We found 134 children, aged from 3 to 7 years, crammed into a single tiny room. Janko, the head teacher, and his assistant Natoma were doing their level best to try to control and teach all these toddlers despite deafening noise, stifling heat and hardly enough room to move within one cramped little classroom.
The various equipment Aris had provided, including some extra desks, were still there, but in storage next door as there was literally not room to put them inside without pushing the children outdoors! The play area was also tiny and woefully inadequate. There was no room within the compound for any expansion.We quickly concluded, and communicated to Aris, that the only way forward for the benefit of these children was to close this school and relocate everybody to more conducive surroundings nearby.
After several weeks searching in the immediate vicinity, we found a wonderful large compound owned by the Gibba family. We took Mr. Gibba to visit our Kunta Kinteh nursery and he was readily persuaded to agree to lease us half of his land to build similar facilities for a new nursery school for Talinding.
Within days of signing a 10 year lease, Fanding and Modou (the master builder who constructed Kunta Kinteh School, Jappineh Nursery etc) had marshalled a local willing building team. In just four days they had cleared the land, relocated the old "shower" area and were well on the way to completing the making of 3,000 blocks ready to start the walls of a three classroom school block. I have no doubt that by the time I return in two weeks, the walls will be at roof height!
Our plan is to complete building work prior to the rainy season and have the new school furnished, painted and fully equipped by the start of the new term in September.
Please support the Talinding Appeal today
To help us give the 134 children of JTT Nursery a fair start in life, please visit our donations page here.
Remember:
All of your donations go directly to our work at JTT and other projects in the Gambia - please give what you can today.
Remember:
- £100 will buy a complete starter library for the new school;
- £50 will buy play equipment for 100 children; and
- just a few pounds can make a huge difference, paying for pens, chalk and paper or a few footballs.
All of your donations go directly to our work at JTT and other projects in the Gambia - please give what you can today.
Aris, who I finally met last week, is delighted that their efforts were not in vain, and she and Nigel have very generously agreed to sponsor both Janko and Natoma to attend Brikama College to work toward their Early Childhood Development Diplomas during the summer holiday recess.
The new school will be named in memory of Hilary Emery who tragically died last year and whose family and friends kindly made a significant donation to the African Oyster Trust towards the cost of the building works.
We are now aiming to secure sufficient sponsorship to pay for the finishing touches - furniture, books, toys, playground equipment and so much more.
A small donation of just £50 will pay for a set of swings or for new tables and chairs for a dozen children while £100 will buy a starter library and shelves. Even a couple of pounds is enough to buy two kid's footballs or many packs of
pens, pencils and chalk. PLEASE DONATE WHATEVER YOU CAN NOW
The new school will be named in memory of Hilary Emery who tragically died last year and whose family and friends kindly made a significant donation to the African Oyster Trust towards the cost of the building works.
We are now aiming to secure sufficient sponsorship to pay for the finishing touches - furniture, books, toys, playground equipment and so much more.
A small donation of just £50 will pay for a set of swings or for new tables and chairs for a dozen children while £100 will buy a starter library and shelves. Even a couple of pounds is enough to buy two kid's footballs or many packs of
pens, pencils and chalk. PLEASE DONATE WHATEVER YOU CAN NOW
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