EDUCATION FOR DEVELOPMENT community. learning social change Annual Report & Accounts 2024-25 Registered Charity No.1006962
Introduction
Education for Development was established in 1985 and specialises in community development and learning to address the needs of disadvantaged communities. Our main focus is on those individuals and communities who have not benefited from formal schooling or have had not had access to education - either because of poverty, gender discrimination, conflict or displacement, ill health or disability.
We work with educators on all forms of learning programmes (primary health care, disability awareness and advocacy, literacy, women’s programmes, conflict resolution, capacity building, vocational/employment skills, agricultural extension, etc), providing support through training, curriculum development, materials development, as well as research and project design. Our work is always community-based.
Education For Development has worked with partners on the development of learning programmes in Africa, Asia and Europe. These include a water and sanitation programme in Kenya; literacy and conflict resolution programmes in Sierra Leone, South Sudan and in the refugee camps of Guinea; and adult education projects in Nepal, India and Bangladesh. Disability initiatives include a literacy and vocational training programmes with the Gambia Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
In Reading, Berkshire, we work with people seeking asylum, offering language classes, sewing sessions, craft workshops and access to computers. This reporting year is our second year in our rented space, where we have been delivering a range of learning opportunities and additional practical support to refugees and people seeking asylum. Creating a supportive and welcoming community has been key to this, and we are grateful for our partnership work with Refugee Support Group, Care for Calais and Green Ways. We have benefited from shared resources such as access to a minibus which has helped us to make trips out of Reading to explore the area. Support from the National Lottery through an Awards for All grant has made much this work possible.
This year we were very sad to lose our Trustee and long-standing colleague Juliet McCaffery. Juliet worked with Education for Development as a consultant on our project work in Sudan, Sierra Leone, Egypt and Pakistan and later became a Trustee. We will remember Juliet for her generosity and her commitment to gender issues, to adult literacy and to education for gypsies and travellers. At her funeral in Brighton we met community members who Juliet had taught to read through her voluntary work at the Friends Centre in Brighton. A life well lived. Thank you Juliet.
We were able to diversify our income this year with training consultant Leethen Bartholomew undertaking some consultancy work with us. This provided some additional income which we used to sponsor the education of students in Sierra Leone who we know from past project work. This includes midwifery training and secondary education materials and funds for students with albinism.
We look forward to building on our portfolio of work in the coming year, including developing our support to people seeking asylum in the Reading area. Learning can support people struggling with their mental health and we aim to create more relevant learning opportunities in the coming year.
Katy Newell-Jones
Katy Newell-Jones, Chair of Trustees
Education For Development
Reading International Solidarity Centre (RISC)
35 – 39 London St Reading
RG1 4PS
mail@educationfordevelopment.org.uk
www.educationfordevelopment.org.uk
Summary of Project Activities in 24-25
1 Working With People Seeking Asylum in Reading, UK
This was our second year in the rented space in Reading and we have been able to deliver a range of learning and support sessions for the refugee community. Here we deliver language development sessions, sewing classes and craft workshops, and provide access to computers, running weekday and weekend sessions. Very few of the people with whom we work are involved in paid work; many have been living in hotels for the last 2-3 years, and some are homeless.
The unit, the facilities and the warm space that we provide is very much valued. We have been able to support people to access jobs, housing, and additional practical support for essential items such as phone credit. We collaborate with multiple local groups including Refugee Support Group, Care for Calais, Red Kitchen, Green Ways and others. Our volunteers work individually and in groups with people, helping people to develop confidence in writing and speaking English. This community learning project connects people in multiple ways - to people, to learning opportunities, to mental health support and to recreational distractions which enable people to cope with the unique and complex realities currently presenting. People seeking asylum face day-to day boredom - a life without structure: without work; family; money and other resources. On top of this boredom is frequently profound distress about the situation at home which makes it very hard to engage with learning. We are always learner-led and respond to the needs of the individual when planning our activities.
Education for Development has created a learning and community space offering resources including sewing machines; computers; Wifi; warmth as well as essential contact with others and access to practical support such as coats and toiletries through partners. We make referrals and signpost people to other agencies.
2 Consultancy Work on FGM
Once again we were pleased to be commissioned to deliver some training and development work around Female Genital Mutilation in the UK for the charity Barnados. Led by Leethen Bartholomew, this work enables us to share our knowledge whilst also generating funds for our work with partners in low resource settings.
3 International Work
We supported a number of students in Sierra Leone with support for their education this year, including a nurse who we first met in Guinea in 1999 when she was a refugee fleeing the war in Sierra Leone. Mariatu Koroma later trained to be a nurse and requested support for her midwifery training this year. We were happy to assist. The image below shows Mariatu at her graduation.
Amongst the other students that we support is Lansana Conteh, a sixteen year old student with albinism living near Kenema in the east of the country. Lansana is an advocate in his community, writing and singing songs about life with albinism in Sierra Leone. We have provided protective clothing, sunscreen, and a school bag so that Lansana can complete his education with minimal exposure to the sun.
4 Sustaining our Work
Education for Development marks its 40th year of work this year. Over the decades, the scale of our organisation has shifted with the resources available to us. At times, we have operated as a relatively large organisation, delivering a wide range of activities across multiple countries; at other moments, we have worked on a much smaller scale. Always though we are focusing on individuals and communities who have not benefited from formal schooling or have had not had access to education - raising awareness of educational issues and providing practical and strategic support. Too many people are missing out on the skills and the essential community that learning can deliver.
In our work in the UK and in recent work in Sierra Leone and Kenya, we see the practical costs of accessing education when living in poverty. The cost of transportation to school or college is a major obstacle to many children and adults pursuing their education. Practical financial inputs such as bus fares can transform lives. Though we have a small number of projects, the scale of need that we encounter through our work is substantial. We would like to increase our support to the individuals and communities with whom we work, and will continue to apply to trust and foundations to develop our work further. We would very much welcome anyone who would like to run a marathon, hold a cake sale or organise a fundraising event for Education For Development. We can help with publicity, materials and other support required.
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Total income Rental income Misc donations Consultancy Income Awards For All Souter Charitable Trust Grants received: Income Opening balance
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