01/08/2008

As preparation for the development of our new implementation framework, the Chair of the Board of Trustees visited Freetown in April/May 2008. Apart from linking up with our Sierra Leone based trustees, Esther Roberts and Yvonne Thompson, she visited schools, spoke to education authorities (Ministry of Education and Freetown City Council) and networked with other charities in Freetown.

A meeting took place on Saturday 3rd May with Yvonne and Esther to discuss the aims of her visit and solicit their ideas about TLBPET’s future strategy in Sierra Leone. Yvonne advised that it was important to set some criteria for the schools we would work with, such as accessibility for monitoring; identifying a limited number initially as ‘pilot projects’ and importantly, raising the local profile of TLBPET and its impact within the community.

With their help and after discussions with the City Council, Ministry of Education and several other education experts in Freetown, two schools were identified as our pilot schools – Regent Rural Community Primary School and Thomas Peters Primary School in Freetown. Professor B. B. Ibrahim and his engineers provided essential support in helping to draw up plans for the refurbishment of these two schools. We are hoping to provide new roofs, windows, classroom furniture, steel doors and in general trying to create a more positive learning environment for the children of these two schools.

We invite any generous friends of education in Sierra Leone to donate funds or resources to enable TLBPET to undertake this work. Regentonians take note!!

Schools donated to..

• St Joseph’s Secondary School
• Prince of Wales School
• St Edwards Secondary School
• St Anthony JSS
• United Methodist Secondary School for Girls
• Government Model Secondary School
• Government Rokel Junior Secondary School
• Tower Hill Municipal Junior Secondary School
• Akibo-Betts Junior Secondary School
• Dr S M Broderick Junior Secondary School
• Fathah Rahman Junior Secondary School
• Constance Cummings John Memorial Junior Secondary School
• Dr June Holst Roness Junior Secondary School
• Amaria Junior Secondary School
• Laura Dove Vocational Secondary School
• Bishop Johnson Memorial Secondary School
• St Anthony’s Boys School
• Dr June Holst Roness Municipal School
• Methodist Girls’ High School
• Beacon High School

The primary schools that received donations were:

• Hope Preparatory School, New England
• Freetown Modern Preparatory School, off Collegiate School Road
• St Paul’s Primary School, Kingtom
• Leone Preparatory School
• International School
• Martile International School Teacher
• Tower Hill Kindergarten and Primary School
• RonSab Preparatory School