beginnings
The Saltpond Education Project began in May 2008, following Rachel's six week trip to Ghana in 2007. After volunteering at Lady Heike Nursery in Cape Coast (see http://www.africasfuture.org.uk/projects.html), Rachel was approached by Mike Ofori, a talented and enthusiastic teacher at Lady Heike who was looking for help in setting up a similar school in his own town of Saltpond. Knowing Mike to be a great person to invest in, Rachel travelled back to Ghana with Laura and Ian in-tow and, after establishing that the beachside community was indeed in desperate need of a free school, the three of them formed the S.E.P.
aims and objectives
The S.E.P. Happy Home School (so-named by Mike!) is a solely volunteer-led initiative, separate from the state-run schools which allow only the most privileged of Ghanaian children access to an education. Though the Ghanaian government has come a long way in terms of social reform, and does ostensibly provide schooling for free, students are unfortunately required to purchase their own uniforms and resources. These basic but vital elements are what many rural families simply cannot afford, and which we endeavour to supply. Another key aspect of the project is subject teaching in the local language as well as English - this is surprisingly rare in most Ghanaian schools. Whilst English is Ghana's official language, many less exposed or educated areas still communicate soley in their regional Akan, English being a language of business, politics and instruction. This lack of communication in the early stages of education means that learning all subjects becomes challenging and alienating for those who cannot even understand basic instructions, and doesn't facilitate English-learning as much as instill a fear and resentment of it.
The school provides a fun, safe and informal environment where any child in Saltpond or the surrounding area who wants to learn, can. It is our experience that many bright and enthusiastic children in Ghana are simply too poor to pay school fees, and so are forced into dangerous manual labour from a very early age in order to provide for themselves and their families. We offer these children a choice, as well as a fun space where they can play, read and escape the hardships of their daily lives.
While large-scale volunteer organisations do lots of important work, it is sadly often the case that volunteers are charged large amounts of money which then disappears into administration costs. This is not the case with the S.E.P. With a small voluntary team and very few overheads, any money raised for the Saltpond Education Project will go straight to Ghana, and anyone who makes a donation is welcome to have some direct input into how the money is spent.
We ask that you pay for your flights and travel insurance, and make a small contribution toward the rent of our volunteer house (approximately £25 per-person, per-week). After that, we just recommend that you fundraise as much or as little as you want to spend on the project once you're there. We want to offer as many people as possible the opportunity to learn from this community, as well as to help support it, and to become involved in a project with which they can have maximum personal input from the very beginning.
how you can help: visiting the school
S.E.P. representatives go out to Ghana regularly in order to do the often frustrating but vital and ultimatley rewarding administration and planning required in order to run a private school. We have made a number of important contacts in the local and regional government, and have been careful to ensure we are working in accordance with Ghana's land registration procedures, as well as with the blessing of local people. We manage all these kind of details from England through our team in Ghana, so volunteers don't have to get involved with anything too taxing!
Some of the most important ways in which you could contribute would be simply to spend time with the children, teaching them new games and songs, developing their English, and teaching and learning about cultural differences. Replenshing resources (especially books and clothes) is also hugely helpful, and you would also be able to assist with cooking the meals for the kids, as well as gardening and general maintenance of the site.
We want to try to put money into the local economy by employing labourers from within Saltpond rather than sending out less experienced volunteers. We have a brilliant workforce in place, but if your talents lie in manual labour then they would certainly love your help with the development, and maintenance of the school site. We have a comprehensive site plan which we aim to have achieved by January 2012, but there are many ways in which you can help us get there! Arranging the buying and transportation of building materials is also something which Mike often needs help with, so this could be something you might like to muck in with too. You can do as much or as little as you'd like to - you'll soon learn that the African attitude towards work is very different to ours, so there'll be plenty of time for chilling!
We are particularly interested in sending out education professionals who can help to support and advise our teachers. Please do get in touch if you have any skills or resources to offer.