Dear Supporter,

So much has happened since our appeal last year.

Thanks to your wonderful response and generosity, we have been able to move forward, as you will see from the latest news below. Thank you for your continued support.

With very best wishes from the Trustees

The Inner Wheel Club of Redditch decided in May this year to fund raise for Waterloo Schools Charity.

With Covid-19 restrictions it has been almost impossible for us to fund raise in the usual way. We were delighted when Helen, International Service Officer of Redditch Inner Wheel, came up with the brilliant idea of a Swimathon – how socially distanced is that?! She undertook to swim 80 lengths for 26 days in August (the equivalent of a Half Marathon – 13 miles). At the time of writing, Helen and the members of Redditch Inner Wheel have raised £ 400 , with donations still coming in. What an achievement!

If you would like to support this initiative and boost the fund total, please email Anne at annerobertson22@hotmail.co.uk and she will provide you with account details.

Helen, swimming for Waterloo Schools

History of the Zoe Carss Nursery School

The capital of Sierra Leone is Freetown, named in the 18th century because it became the new home for resettled slaves from Britain and North America. They spoke many languages - in fact today there are eighteen, with Krio being the lingua franca spoken by 87% of the population. English is the official language but children only learn it when they start primary school at six years of age. It was because of this that Laurie Read planned, designed and built the Zoe Carss Nursery School in 2008. It has two classrooms with a large covered barry (verandah) at either side so that the children can play in a sheltered place in sunshine or rain. The Zoe Carss Education Trust enabled the charity to build this wonderful facility. With the opportunity of attending nursery school, the children now have 3 years of English lessons before starting their primary education. The total enrolment at the nursery is now 150 children.

The extreme climate in Sierra Leone takes its toll, so with the aid of your generous donations the Charity has been busy these last 18 months funding much needed renovations of the nursery buildings and refurbishing nursery school furniture. All this could not have been achieved without the invaluable help and supervision of our two Trustees on the ground, Kenneth Kromanty and Morlai Kamara, as well as Mabel Sawyerr.

Helping them to help themselves

Primary school pupil assisting with refurbishing of new nursery school furniture

Preparing for the new school term at Zoe Carss Nursery

Mission Statement

Founded in 2005, the Waterloo Schools Charity has done a great deal with your help to achieve its stated aim and vision:

To advance the education of children in Waterloo, Sierra Leone, particularly but not exclusively those attending Waterloo Primary School and the Peninsula Secondary School, by the provision of financial assistance, equipment support and such other facilities as the trustees shall from time to time in their absolute discretion determine.