JJT Nursery School is in Talinding, Serrekunda [map] a few km from central Banjul. Since 2005, Pageant member Aris Harrison-Price has coordinated assistance given to this school by Nuneaton Lions Club, Ashby Castle Rotary Club, Coleman Primary School and other organisations in the Leicester area.  In 2010 the African Oyster Trust built a new school on a new site, and the school changed its name to the Hilary Emery Nursery School.

In December 2005, Aris Harrison-Price was on holiday in The Gambia, when she was taken to see a local school by a tourist guide. This is a regular practice for tourist guides, and is exactly the way Pageant started back in 2000. The guide, Mbemba, took her to see JTT Nursery School in Serekunda - essentially part of Greater Banjul. Although the Gambian Government provides primary and secondary education, parents must pay for nursery classes. This nursery school charges just £2 per term, which means that there is little or no money for equipment. Aris decided to start helping the school there and then, and to make it her personal project.

On return to the UK she enlisted the help of Nuneaton Lions Club, Ashby Castle Rotary Club, Coleman Primary School in Leicester, plus a lot of individuals and smaller groups in that area. Aris has since joined Pageant, who now provide admin and logistical help with what is still her project, and Mbemba is also still helping her with the school. The first JTT page is based on a Powerpoint presentation produced by Aris, and describes her first visit and includes details from visits up to February 2007. This page contains more photos and news from JTT after further visits by Aris from 2008 onwards.

November 2008 Update - New desks and roof

The photos below show some of the progress that has been made at the school since the first JTT page was first published in July 2007.

JTT received six tables and ten chairs, a part of the furniture donated by Southwater County Infants' School (see details), Janko, the head teacher, wrote to say how delighted he was to receive them, and the children's faces (below left) suggest that the chairs are a perfect fit!!  The locally built desks (below right) were paid for by the Ashby Coffee Pot Club and members of the Country Colours Art Group. In the past, 48 children had sat four to a table, and those remaining had only long benches upon which they sat and worked on their laps. The new furniture enables 94 children to work at a table or desk with only the very youngest left still on benches alone. We hope to provide for more desks or tables for them in the future.

Aris had an enjoyable dinner and evening with Nuneaton Lions Club as their after dinner speaker. Their donation helped to replace the rusted, holed roof, and also contributed towards some of Natoma's first few month's salary.

the new roof, funded by Nuneaton Lions club

Aris gave a talk and PowerPoint presentation to the Ashby Castle Rotary Club. To her delight, as well as the £25 fee, they were so moved that they gave a cheque for £300 towards the cost of installing the tap. The water bill,  always less than 100 Dalasis, is shared by the school and the landlord.

The PE or play parachute is used in the UK by Nursery schools, after school groups, Brownie packs etc. as a fun way of providing exercise for young children. (see details) Aris bought this for the JTT children as an end of Ramadan present.

the new tap, funded by Ashby Castle Rotary club	the PE parachute

Whiteboards (see below) are essentially an updated version of the old-fashioned slate. They save on the expense of paper, and are appropriate technology for JTT which doesn't have electricity for hi-tech equipment.

children with their new whiteboards, in the classroom and working outside with Natoma

Aris Harrison-Price has sent us an update of news and photos from JTT Nursery School.  She is no longer able to undertake major fundraising for the school, but she and Nigel are continuing to pay the salary for Natoma, the assistant teacher they employed three years ago.

Aris learned from a group called The African Oyster Trust, run by Lady Kira Dalton, that there was a possibility of sending both Natoma and Janko (the school's head-teacher) on the Early Childhood Development Diploma course at the Brikama College. Kira has considerable projects of her own (schools, hospital, medical centre etc) and lives in The Gambia for about eight months of the year. She offered to go and chat with JTT's two teachers, to establish that they had sufficient enthusiasm to warrant spending £1000 on their 3 year course. When she arrived, a hornets nest was opened, and to sum up, she decided that the African Oyster Trust would be prepared to help financially. The school building has always been far too small for the number of children. There are currently 134 on the roll - too many for just two teachers. Despite having had more desks built and some donated through Pageant, there wasn't enough room to use them or much of the equipment that Aris had taken out, so most of this is stored away.

Kira was very impressed by both Natoma's and Janko's dedication to their work, and extremely impressed by the children's level of achievement particularly under the constraints of the building. She invited Janko and Natoma to visit the schools supported by the African Oyster trust so that they could see different methods of teaching and to discuss the college course, so they could make an informed decision whether to commit themselves to the course. It is a very intensive course, involving attending in the early morning five days a week throughout the ENTIRE school holidays for three years - not a decision to be taken lightly, but one which can change their lives and make their futures much more secure. Having made the visits, they are ecstatic at the prospect. Aris and Nigel will be covering the £1000 course fees, as well as continuing to pay Natoma's salary.

A new school!

Meanwhile, Kira Dalton had a meeting with the Mayor of Talinding to discuss the possibility of moving to a new school building. This agreed upon, she then took it upon herself to search for a suitable site. She negotiated the rental of some land attached to another compound upon which to build the new school. It will have three good sized, separate classrooms plus washing and toilet facilities. There is already a partially constructed building on site, which will be completed to create a home for the Headteacher, and safe storage for school equipment. The new building will be named after the late Hilary Emery, as donations in her memory will fund the building. Work has already started, and the school hope to move in for the new academic year this autumn. See further information on this page of the African Oyster Trust website. We will keep you up to date with progress.
 

Overcrowded conditions in the present JTT Nursery School
	The new school site
Kira's team of builders making blocks for the new school

early May 2010 Update - Building Progress

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Kira Dalton has just sent us the latest photos of the building work at JTT's new school. The intention is to rename it the Hilary Emery School when it reopens on its new site:
 

"Great news to report is that the builders have got on incredibly well with the work while I've been in UK. In just five weeks they have completed all of the blockwork and nearly done the plastering too! The soakaway (cesspit) for the toilets has been dug and is being blocked today. Next week, we will be putting the roof together - and then it is just painting and decorating etc. Most certainly, all will be completed before I go back to UK in June just before the rainy season. All is on target for the new 'Hilary Emery' school to open in September. Needless to say Janko, Natoma and the kids are over the moon." head builder Modou and Camera hard at work >>
one of the classrooms with the office and storeroom at the right end of the building
inside of Classroom 2	outside of classroom
a few blocks left for closing up the compound wall once deliveries of sand etc. have finished in what will soon be the playground!

late May 2010 Update - Building work nears completion

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They are making great progress with the building work for the new school. The soakaway is done, the roof rafters are all in place and fitting the corrugated sheets has started, and should only take a couple of days. After that, doors and windows will be installed.

roof beams in place
building the soakaway	Mr Gibba, Fanding and Kira

These later photos show the roof nearly done, doors and windows fitted, and toilets built. All of the  classrooms have been plastered.

roof cladding in place	inside view of roof & plastered walls
doors and window frames fitted	toilets nearing completion

...and the final photos show the roof completed and some of the local kids checking up on progress.

roof completed	local kids check progress

The new school just needs painting and furnishing and will be ready to open after the summer holidays with a new name - the Hilary Emery Nursery School.

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