It is located in the Githurai area of Nairobi, Kenya. The school opened in January 2010 with 45 students, all refugees. We now have around 280 children, around two thirds are refugees (mostly from DR Congo and South Sudan) and the rest are Kenyans. Refugee children face particular challenges as they may have missed out on school, been educated under a different system in their home country, be una
ble to speak English, be recovering from trauma, face discrimination at other local schools due to attitudes and lack of understanding of the needs of refugees, and come from families with little or no source of income. There are also internally displaced (IDP) children living in Githurai who face many of the same issues as refugees and, as poverty levels in the area are high, many local families also struggle to send their children to school. So we now take IDP and local children as well as refugees. Our school operates in a rented building. We run the full range of nursery and primary classes from Baby Class up to Class 8, and follow the standard Kenyan curriculum. Every November our Class 8 students take the national primary school exams (KCPE) which enable them to go on to secondary school. Although founded on Christian principles, we accept children whatever their religious beliefs. The ages of the students range from 3-20 years as we take children who missed out on education and need to catch up. We also provide additional support to older children who join the school speaking little or no English. When we have sufficient funds we provide the children with lunch, and occasionally breakfast as well. This is important as some children do not get enough to eat at home, and it is not easy for them to concentrate when they are hungry. Outside of school, our children take part in local sports events and other community activities. As well as running the school we provide advice and support to both young and adult refugees to help them become a part of the local community.