Student sucess

We have heard about how the Bob Simson school has been rebuilt and strengthened against damage by future storms. We also supplied classroom furniture, such as strong tables with metal frames, and metal and plastic chairs.  These cannot be bought locally, and will last for years.

The number of students has gone up significantly – by October 2022 we had almost four hundred young people in the school. Many of them have come from surrounding villages, and some had actually been sent further away to school, but are now returning to continue their education much closer to their homes.

The academic performance has also been impressive.  Twenty-two students took the Basic Education Certification Examination for 2022. Not only did every one of them pass, but the highest mark was achieved by a girl!  In a country where at the age of 15, over 50% of boys are literate, but only 39.8 % of girls, this success is particularly notable.

This exam is taken at the end of junior secondary school, after three years of a broad general education. Recently issues such as environmental protection have been included in the syllabus.  As we know from experience, Sierra Leone is vulnerable to climate change, and extreme events including floods and severe storms, so this is a very important topic for the young people to learn about.

Bob Simson Technical Secondary School

Six years ago, the only secondary school between Moyamba junction and Taiama was severely damaged during a storm, with the roof actually being blown off. You might think this would close the school completely, but you would be wrong!  Despite having no roof and the walls crumbling, children have continued to be educated by their dedicated teachers.

At the same time, rebuilding of the school has been happening, and now it is named the Bob Simson Secondary School, after the late husband of one of our Trustees.  Like the teaching within its walls, the building work has been done in the face of extraordinary circumstances. The COVID pandemic and resulting lockdowns have affected Sierra Leone as they have the whole world. Shipping and other costs have risen sharply, and this is expected to continue.

Even so, during this period, the school has been rebuilt with extra reinforcements strengthening it against future storms. The new verandah protects against the hot sun, and makes moving between the classrooms easier during the rainy season. The roof is watertight, and the steel doors are strong.  Walls are plastered, and importantly we have newly painted toilets for both sexes, and a borehole providing clean safe water! The school itself has been almost completely painted now.

The inside of the Bob Simson and Gill Curry schools are also being equipped, with tables and chairs coming from several different sources. These include Larchfield School in Maidenhead, Schoolaid charity in Buckinghamshire, UCB in Slough, and the Vila family from County Durham. Some furniture is still travelling to Sierra Leone, while other items have arrived and are being sorted so they are used for the right age groups (primary school chairs being a bit small for teenage pupils!).

As a result, the headmaster of the Bob Simson school tells us that the newly admitted children will no longer have to sit on the floor! The numbers have been increasing, so these chairs will make a huge difference.