The number of children attending the nursery class has doubled thanks to the smart new classroom and extra staffing.
Kipawa has paid to refurbish a nursery classroom at Mukuyu School and now funds the employment of an additional nursery teacher, Joyce. The nursery class is by far the best equipped and most attractive room in the school, thanks to the generosity of Kipawa donors.
The number of children attending the nursery class has doubled thanks to the smart new classroom and extra staffing.
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Click here to read the article about Kipawa in today's Daily Record (pages 2 & 3).
Following our visit in November 2012 we have been looking at the future for Kipawa in Kenya as it continues to grow and flourish. The money you are giving is really making a difference to the children in Mukuya. The school population has increased by almost 50% and more children in this area are getting an education than previously. Nursery Until now, Kipawa has focussed on the main aim of ensuring that children in Ruiru are fed and attending school. As well as continuing to provide lunches and porridge in Mukuya, and building on the health and counselling programmes in place, we will help to extend the nursery provision. Nursery education is not currently provided by the Kenyan government and relies on financial contributions from parents. Kipawa will part-fund the provision of nursery teachers in Kipawa. Girls' Toilets Following the successful renovation of the boys' toilet block at Mukuya, we are finalising the plans to building new facilities for the girls. Classroom Refurbishment In the coming months we will be refurbishing two further classrooms in Mukuya to the same standard as the new nursery classroom which was completed last year. Sponsoring Secondary Education![]() In Kenya, secondary education is not provided by the government. Kipawa will fund a number of scholarships to enable needy children to complete their secondary education in day schools or boarding schools as appropriate. The funding will allow children whose families could not afford to send them to secondary school to gain qualifications that would have been out of their reach. The scholarships will include funding for the full four years of secondary school plus the necessary social work and other support to ensure that the young people can make the most of their education. The photo (above) shows a young man, Nicholas Njeru, who has already benefitted from Kipawa's sponsorship. Many of you donate not just money but clothes and shoes and toys for the children we meet. Particular thanks this time has to go to the incredible Lindsay Given, who collected over 100 pairs of shoes to give to children at the Macheo orphanage.
Thanks too to Gill Thompson and our friends from Lloyds Bank who coordinated a collection of toys from friends and family in early November - two rucksacks full of teddy bears, dolls, cars and stationery were given out to nursery children at the Mukuya School on Friday 16th November. Thanks to all who donated In mid-November, two Kipawa trustees (Alasdair MacFarlane and David Welsh) went with one of our donors (David Jones) to Kenya to visit Kipawa’s feeding programme and the other projects we’re running with our friends at Macheo (our sister charity based in Thika). ![]() Feeding programme The majority of our efforts are currently focused on Mukuya School in the district of Ruiru. The bulk of the money raised by you is spent supporting the feeding programme at the school - and we are delighted to report that this project has been a real success. When we started in 2010, our donations supported the provision of lunch every day for kids aged 5-13. Today, we are doing more; not only is lunch now supplemented by a porridge breakfast for all kids but the programme is now feeding more kids than we originally anticipated. Whereas when we started the school roll was just over 400, as of November 2012 it now stands at 603. The headteacher (Peter Mwaura) believes that increase is due to the attractiveness of the feeding programme. We are delighted by this news. While the delivery of regular nutritious meals to these children is a good thing in its own right, Kipawa was always interested in its impact on school attendance and retention. It’s too early to assess its impact on performance, but Peter attributes some of the increase in the KCPE (Kenyan Certificate of Primary Education) scores from an average of 221 in 2010 to 242 in 2012 to our efforts. Certainly, kids who are no longer hungry are more able to concentrate ![]() New toilets In 2011 we commissioned and paid for the construction of new toilet blocks for the boys at the school. You’ll see from the picture below that this has now been completed. No longer are the boys at the school expected to use facilities infested with rats, and there has been a marked decrease in incidents of diarrhoea and other water-borne illnesses at the school. Through this investment, your donations have made a real difference to the health and well-being of the children in Mukuya. ![]() New Nursery Classroom We were present to witness the opening of the new nursery classroom - again, funded by Kipawa donations. This is currently the most modern classroom facility at the school, and the only one with glass-paned windows. We took over with us some toys and gifts which our supporters had kindly donated. The children and teachers were delighted by this new addition and sang a lovely thank you song for us on the day |
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