Key Milestone Reached for Volunteers Foundation Academy and Supporters
The future doesn't just happen. We are building it, and we are building it all the time.
-Hannah Fry, Mathematician
It has been a very positive start to the 2022 school year. Firstly, to see the joy of the school children returning to learn and interact with their teachers and friends. Their smiling faces said it all. Secondly, to witness the commitment of staff and pupils to continue the school programmes, allowing children to prosper in their learning. The learning programmes have been advanced this year with the introduction of a reading group, IT literacy programme and an Active Schools programme, where the Academy plays a leading role to partner with schools in the community to encourage pupils to reach their full potential. And thirdly, reaching a key milestone in securing the permit needed to start the construction to expand the school buildings.
Thank you to those who have been generous and committed to allow us to reach this milestone, through raising the funds in the last year to support the application and initial drawings. Thanks must go to the Volunteers Foundation team and external consultants who persisted with the application preparations despite the challenges of mounting bureaucracy and delays brought about by the pandemic. To name a few champions, we thank our consultants Eng Johan Butali (Structural Engineer), Ian Mwangi (Architect), Sheila Kagwiria (Interior Design), Benard Obara (NEMA/EIA application), Helen Wanjohi (Town Planner) and Denis Dang’ana (Betts Townsend Taylor Construction and Project Management) for commitment to reach this milestone.
For this next phase, we are in the process of reviewing the building plans for Project Pamoja, (pamoja means together in Swahili), that will deliver a high-quality school building redevelopment to the community of Kibera. The building plans need to continue to ensure quality of education, as well as accommodate changes brought about by the pandemic such as class sizes, building approaches and increased costs of materials, which have widely fluctuated at a global level and are impacting on local procurement costs. We are also mindful of quality of construction, safety and environmental impact. New drawings will have to be submitted and approved; funds for this phase of the building will have to be raised – please continue to be part of our progress and donate to this phase https://www.globalgiving.org/donate/92404/volunteers-foundation/
During the festive break, we have completed preparation works at the site, rebuilding and securing a perimeter wall. The wall forms an integral part of the next phase of development on the site and some of the funds raised last year were used to complete this. Thank you for your support to allow this to go ahead and for the contractors who assisted over the festive season. Here are some pictures of the works being done and the completed wall. Plants will be added in some sections. The wall will be used as a school noticeboard and drawing space for pupils, as part of our vision to make the Academy conducive to learning and integrated into the wider community.
Looking forward to the sharing our progress on the learning programmes, building plans and the new wall becoming part of our school community. As always, many thanks for your continuous support and trust! Without you all this would not be possible.
To donate to Volunteers Foundation Academy https://www.globalgiving.org/donate/92404/volunteers-foundation/
VF Team
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