2024-03-31-accounts - Scholarships For Street Kids

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Appeal - 2024

Providing educational opportunities for very poor children in Myanmar since 2009

S4SK is a registered charity in the UK, No: 1131559 www.s4sk.org.uk, e-mail: info.s4sk@gmail.com

Who we are :

In the UK, we are Scholarships for Street Kids (S4SK)

S4SK, 72 Sun Street,

Haworth, Keighley, BD22 8AH, UK E-mail: info.s4sk@gmail.com

S4SK trustees are:

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Sheila Kaye (Trustee), Anna Young (Secretary), Erica Cadbury (Treasurer),
George Penaluna (Trustee), John McConnell (Managing Trustee),
Michael Slingsby MBE (Patron) and Esther McConnell (Trustee)
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In Myanmar, we work together with the Phoenix Academy for Learning and Motivation (PALM)

PALM

306-B Golden Parami Condominium, Parami Road, Hlaing Township, Yangon, Myanmar

PALM staff, teachers and facilitators on an away-day

Together, S4SK and PALM work to bring real change to the lives of severely deprived children.

S4SK, H4SS and PALM, a brief history:

We opened our first class for out-of-school children, and awarded our first scholarships in 2007 on the initiative of John McConnell, a British Quaker, who was teaching conflict resolution skills in Yangon at the time. Scholarships for Street Kids (S4SK) was established as a UK charity in 2009 (Reg. No: 1131559). By 2013 there was a strong team in Myanmar, and we formed a local NGO which, in 2016, registered as Hope for Shining Stars (H4SS), (Reg. No: 1/PT/0172). Myanmar has been in crisis since the military takeover in early 2021, a situation that has been difficult for NGOs to navigate. In March 2023, so as to be able to operate more safely, the Governing Board of H4SS decided to re-register as the Phoenix Academy for Learning and Motivation (PALM), a non-profit, private academy dedicated to provision of education to children from disadvantaged backgrounds. All the existing work of H4SS continues as before. New areas of work include capacity-building courses for teachers, expansion of provision of online learning, and the inclusion of children living in orphanages. PALM directors and staff are all drawn from H4SS and include Buddhist, Christian, and Muslim faiths. We provide the same opportunities to children of all ethnic and religious backgrounds. Approximately 50% of our students are girls.

Remembering a much-loved colleague: Daw Kyu Kyu Shwe (72 Years) : — 5 passed away on 22nd “4 é December 2023. She joined us in 2014. As a Fs - : . retired Assistant Director in the Department i Ine . “ay + : a pi ‘i of Basic Education, Kyu Kyu had much experi\ ¥ - v . & , ence and wisdom to contribute throughout our education journey Daw Kyu Kyu Shwe with PALM directors, Daw Myint (as S4SK-M, then H4SS, Myint Swe and Daw Aye Aye Thinn and lastly PALM) for the education of out-of-

school-and-working children and young people. Helped by her Muslim faith, she met cancer with courage and serenity. We miss her hugely and her memory will remain in our hearts for ever.

The children we support: Most of the children we help are out-of-school, and work long hours each day to support their families from as young as eight or nine. They make bricks, peel beans, fish, scavenge for recyclables, carry loads on building sites, herd cattle, pick watercress and more. Their families have been illiterate for generations and cannot afford the loss of income incurred by children attending school full-time. Children thus become trapped in poverty, unable to access education at the time in their lives when they need to be in school.

For more about working children, you can see the story of a young brickmaker in one of the videos on the homepage of our website. The work of S4SK and PALM enables child labourers to access education, vocational training, and lead better lives as a result.

Our strategy to enable working children to improve their life chances: Provision of education alone is not enough; it needs to be paralleled with care for the economic situation of their families. Over the past 17 years, we have responded our families’ problems as they arose, and in the process have developed a strategy which releases children from the trap of poverty and gives them access to education. 1. Accessible education: The first step is the provision of education in a way that does not depend on previous schooling. This is important as most of the children in our classes have never enrolled in school. Our teachers use a child-centred, active-learning approach, with games, quizzes and projects. Classes are fun, and the children are keen to learn. Our non-formal education (NFE) classes act as supplementary education classes would in the UK, bringing illiterate and out-of-school children to the approximate level of first or second year in secondary school.

Every class has a beginning. Usually it starts with an approach from a concerned individual or NGO worker worried about the plight of children on the street in a particular locality. Our staff will then visit the area and set up a meeting with community leaders and parents to see if they will help research the need in the locality. Once the survey is completed, we ask them to join us in establishing a class. If they agree, we set up a Non-formal Education and Child Protection Committee (NFECPC) to help arrange and then oversee the class. These local NFECPCs are invaluable in helping us keep in touch with the community, finding and adapting class venues, and identifying educated people locally who could be trained as teachers.

Once started, the class becomes part of the day to day lives of desperately poor families, and as a result we begin to encounter, and engage with, the problems they face.

The story of Se Ywar NFE class: Se Ywar is a small village on the outskirts of Pakokku, in upper Myanmar. The village is poor, with most children out of school and working alongside their families to support the family income. Local trades include road-building, cutting firewood, making cheroots, herding cattle and picking water-cress and bamboo shoots. The NFE class in Se Ywar was the third PALM has opened around Pakokku, the others having started in 2014. The initiative was taken by our teacher Ye Yint Kyaw, who had been teaching in a village four miles away.

After researching the need in the area, and establishing a local committee, the class

opened in 2018 with 18 out-of-school children . The opening ceremony was attended by the Assistant Township Education Officer and community leaders from Se Village, where they all encouraged villagers to take this opportunity for their children’s education. The class took place at first under the shade of a neem tree in the middle of the village.

Since all the children were in work, it was difficult to find a suitable time for the class, but eventually all families agreed that the best time would be from 7pm to 9pm each evening, six days per week.

“It was always dark when our NFE class was over, and both teachers and local committee members helped take our students home safely . The village is strong in cooperation, and in volunteering.” (U Ye Yint Kyaw) On very wet days during the rainy season, the class would move to a small library building nearby.

In 2020, the class had to stop due to the pandemic , but provision of education continued:

“Instead of teaching in the classroom, we visited the children’s homes

with work sheets, and met outside to tutor them.” (U Ye Yint Kyaw) With the ending of lockdown, the class opened again, now with more students whose parents had fallen into poverty as a result of the pandemic, bringing numbers to around 50. For ease of teaching, we separated the class into three. The civil war that followed the military coup of February 2021 has brought a new set of dangers. Since gatherings of young people are liable to attract the suspicion of the military, the committee thought it would be safer to house these classes in a building, which we did.

As with all our NFE classes, our teachers use an active-learning approach; as the other teachers at Se Ywar class explain:

“I came to realize that teaching using child-centred approach is very helpful to students’ learning. I used real objects such as plants in teaching, to be able to easily understand the lessons, and I found that the children were more interested in learning.” (Daw Yin Yin Tint) “The children like learning by doing. They enjoy activities that involve drawing and painting. When I come into the class, they are always keen to find out what I would teach on that day.” (Daw Htway Su Su Hlaing) In 2023, six of the older students at Se Ywar joined the PALM online education project, growing to 21 this year. Despite initial difficulties (related to use of the technology), we managed to establish a reliable online service:

Geometry lesson, and Daw Yin Yin Thint teaching about traditional Myanmar units of measurement (tin-daung, kwe-daung and pyi-daung) using baskets and tins.

“I thought the online learning would make the children too tired to achieve well. Unexpectedly, they were not tired at all, but happily learned. They enjoyed learning to use computers as well.” (Htway Su Su Hlaing)

As with our other NFE classes we organise annual edutainment events to help motivate the children and the communities round about. The UN Convention of the Rights of the Child is celebrated with a gallery walk and quiz games to raise awareness of child rights. Then too, we have our own annual Talents of Stars competition where students participate in poetry, art and music competitions. Two mothers of new students said:

“My daughter could not read very well before she joined the class. Now she got a reward for reading; I was very surprised.”

“I have never had this experience before and was happy to participate it. I want to do it next year too.”

2. Compensation for lost income: Many of our pupils are the breadwinners for their families, so that time in class means a lowering of family income. In normal times, Family Support (FS) payments compensate families for lost earnings while children are in class. However, during the current civil war, with prices of essentials fluctuating wildly, we have been providing food and hygiene hampers rather than cash payments. This helps ensure that families have what they need to look after their children.

3. Social work: With little or no experience of schooling themselves, parents often do not understand the need for consistency in attendance, and readily withdraw children from class to help at home or work if money is tight. Our teachers act as social workers, visiting homes and ready to help with whatever domestic problem threatens the home environment for the children. We have a bursary fund too, with which to pay medical bills, repair homes etc.

San San Nyunt’s story: Ma San San Nyunt was born in 2006, in Se Village near Pakokku. Her mother died when she was 2 years old, since when she has been raised by her father and an aunt. The family is landless, and both father and her aunt work as occasional agricultural labourers. Her aunt also rolls cheroots at home for a local business. In this way, the family eked out a living, averaging around 5,000/Kyat (around £2 at the time) per day, that is until the aunt was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016, and had to give up the labouring work.

At this point, San San’s father withdrew her from school, aged just 10, and for the next six years, San San joined her aunt making cheroots, and taking on the agricultural jobs that her aunt used to do. That all changed in 2022, when a neighbour told her aunt about our NFE class in Se village. San San was

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San San Nyunt when she joined our NFE class
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Learning hairdr e ssing in Pakokku
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San San being supported a t interview by her teachers
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eager to enrol. Although 16, her education was still at primary level, but she was able to catch up quickly. When our teachers asked about what career she would like to follow, San San said:

“After finishing in the NFE class, I want to learn hairdressing and make-up beauty. When I can work at it very well I want to teach younger students who are interested, like me.”

To build on her interest, in 2023 we enrolled San San for two linked courses (totalling 9 months) with a hair and beauty training centre in Pakokku, and provided her with a hairdresser’s training head and bicycle.

Then, in March 2024. We found a job for her with a beauty centre in Yangon. PALM staff arranged for her to obtain a national identity card (in the current situation it is dangerous for young people to travel without one), and accompanied her to the interview. San San has been there for three months now, and enjoys the work. The shop manager has indicated her intention to employ her on a long-term basis. San San’s earnings are currently 100,000/- Kyat per month plus commission, so she is able to send money to her family. San San’s aunt told us:

“PALM’s support each month has helped us get by, and we are very grateful. We can see the difference in San San. She can speak to anyone, and can even read whole books! ”

San San, said:

“I feel grateful to our teachers because I could change my life with their great support. If I did not attend NFE class, I would be making cheroots, or working in the fields of the farms round about, planting, weeding or picking the crops. Now I can study the subject I like and I can work with this skill. I am very happy now .”

5. Successive opportunities: Provision of successive opportunities for education and training to bring about real change in children’s lives has been a key part of our philosophy from the start. Vocational training (VT) scholarships sponsored by S4SK have included health and social care, sewing and tailoring, hairdressing, electrical appliance maintenance, domestic electrical circuitry, plumbing, mobile phone repair, welding, motorbike and auto repair, and air-con servicing to name a few. Once qualified, students can access low-interest start-up loans linked with the family savings scheme.

Myo Myo Aung’s story: Ma Myo Myo Aung was born in 2010, one of eight children. Her parents made a living as daily workers in a brick yard, and gathering bamboo shoots from an area of forest that they owned. Myo Myo was unable to enrol in school since (as with many illiterate families) her parents did not possess national identity cards.

Money was always tight, and a combination of medical bills and insufficient work, would occasionally make it difficult to feed everyone. Her parents would solve the problem each time by selling a small portion of their land, just to get them through. There was another such family crisis shortly before Myo Myo joined our NFE class in 2017. Her parents had used the rest of their land as collateral against a large loan, then had to give up the land when they could not repay in time. On this occasion PALM helped with the a monthly food hamper, and an interestfree loan to pay off the residual debt. Myo Myo joined the NFE class in 2017, aged 7:

“It was fun in the class . I remember we enjoyed competing in calculating the mathematical problems , and to play games in learning the lessons. There was even a snack eating snack competition. It was good fun .”

Her teacher, Daw Nwe Ni, quickly noticed that Myo Myo had a talent for drawing, and indeed she won prizes for reading and

drawing in our annual Talents of Stars competition. Myo Myo completed the NFE curriculum and moved to the PALM Learning Centre in 2022:

“The Learning Centre teachers warmly welcomed us. Lessons were both online, and in person. The senior students helped me to settle in. Our daily chores were to keep the compound clean, and go with senior students to the market to buy food for everyone. We had to note down the expense and the list of all the food that we bought.”

She studied Burmese, English and Maths in the Grade 5 online class in the mornings, then sewing and tailoring twice weekly in the afternoons, and computer studies on other days. It was the experience of the tailoring class that led to her current ambition to be a fashion designer. Reflecting on her life at the Learning Centre, Myo Myo said: “At the Learning Centre, one thing I liked was that we

could express our challenges in staying and studying at the weekly meeting, and could share our feelings to our teachers . When I was older I helped the younger students.”

In Jan 2024, Myo Myo took up an apprenticeship with a quality dress designer in Yangon, where she is studying dress design, and learning business and retailing skills. “ I will follow my dream to become a fashion dress designer by learning the new skills and learn as much as I can from training and working here. It is good to stay and study in the Virgo Training Centre. Whatever the challenges, I will work hard till I can reach my goal.” Myo Myo’s mother said:

“Since the pandemic, we have received rice, cooking oil, dried fish, lentils, onion, soap, and toothpaste, and have had enough to eat each month. Before, I did not understand the difference between needs and wants. When I attended the parental education class, I understood I should be more careful how I spend. I cannot read or write. I want my children to have a better future and be able to stand by themselves. Thank you PALM and S4SK.”

Thet Naing Tun’s story: Thet Naing Tun was born in 2009 in a town beside the Irrawaddy River. His parents were farmers, and owned some land. However, in 2012, his father suffered first a hernia, and then a stroke. The family had no savings, so the land had to be sold to pay for his medical treatment. Without land, the family made a living, fishing and basket-making. In 2014, when Thet Naing was five, his mother died of liver disease. His father did the best he could, but in 2017 when Thet Naing was eight, decided to withdraw him from school to help at home. He was out of school for five years until his elder married sister, brought him to live with her family. Thet Naing’s sister and her husband both worked in the local brickworks, but with three small children in tow, she could only earn around 5,000/- kyats (around £2) per day, not enough to be able to send Thet Naing to school. The sister recalls:

Thet Naing T u n in the brick yard

“My mother-in-law told me that her daughter had enrolled at H4SS’s NFE class, and was already able to read and write. So, I contacted the teacher and enrolled my brother in her class.”

The placement test put Thet Naing at Grade 3 level in 2021, but he was quick to catch up, and moved up to Grade 4 during the year. During weekends and holidays, he worked in the brick yard:

Enjoying a discussion at the PALM Learning Centre

6. Poverty alleviation: Many of our families are in debt to money-lenders at interest rates of between 20% and 30% per month. Typically, moneylenders do not push for the debt to be repaid early, preferring to collect the interest over months and years. The impact on children’s wellbeing is huge, with child labour often funding these interest payments.

H4SS runs a savings scheme which can mitigate or remove family debt in time for NFE alumni to access full-time vocational training or further education. There is a strong social side to the scheme, with groups meeting every month to deposit savings, adjudicate loan applications from other savers, check their interest, share saving and income-generating plans, and encourage each other. The scheme has kept going, though with adjusted savings commitments, through both the pandemic and the current emergency.

“I got 150 MMK for one cartful of 50 bricks. I could move around 75 cartloads in the morning and got about 11,000/- kyat.”

Having completed the NFE curriculum, he joined the PALM online class at middle school level in 2023. However, he was having difficulties both at home and in class. He wanted a mobile phone to play games, which his sister was unable to give. There were frequent arguments, and his brother-in-law began to scold him. Eventually, his sister threatened to send him back to stay with his father.

PALM staff talked at length with Thet Naing and his sister, and all agreed that he should come to live at our Learning Centre. Thet Naing told us:

“I was upset when my sister told me she would send me back to my dad because I guessed he would keep me out of school. I went to the Learning Centre because I did not have any choice. Anyway, I decided to try hard again to follow my dream. That way, it seemed that I would get a better job.

After some time, I came to trust the teachers’ leadership, and my ambition became stronger and stronger. The older students treated me like a brother.

We cannot stay carelessly here, but take turns at daily chores, do our homework regularly, and have regular study hour. I found online learning difficult at the start, but now I am used to it . It is safer for me that I don’t need to go to school far from my home. My ambition is to become a driver and car mechanic and I will try hard to achieve it. I am very happy to learn the computer lessons and to practise that skill. I feel grateful to my sister and my teachers to be able to have this opportunity that I could not have expected.”

7. Specialist teacher training: Teaching children from illiterate families and little or no previous schooling is challenging. Each year we run teacher capacity-building courses which emphasise the child-centred, active-learning approach which, we know, from many years’ experience, works with out-of-school children. In addition, this year, PALM is running courses which focus on deploying the same approach in an online setting. The courses are open to teachers from other NGOs. In the past year, teachers from around twenty organisations have participated.

The general objective of this training is for participants to understand how approaches to NFE could enhance their roles as teachers and supervisors. Specific objectives are that, after the training, students are able to:

Understand key concepts of education and learning, the relevance of the cognitive, social and emotional development of children;
Learn to use an approach that emphasises active learning as opposed to passive learning;
Structure lessons using a learner-centered approach in contrast to the traditional teachercentred approach;
Design lesson-plans which include active learning techniques, and be able to teach lessons effectively:
Understand the different purposes of assessment, that is formative assessment (which is used to encourage and guide), and summative assessment (which is used to assess achievement);
Understand the process of developing a culture of positive discipline within the class, and be able to manage classes well.

The PALM Learning Centre: We opened the Learning Centre in 2014 to help alumni of our non-formal education (NFE) classes make the transition to the more formal approach they will experience in vocational colleges. For students from remote villages it acts as a safe midway house between the slow pace of rural life and the much faster, more demanding, culture of city colleges. The centre comprises three buildings, affording space for boys’ and girls’ dormitories in separate buildings, along with classroom space. Three teachers currently live at the Learning Centre, where they are responsible for 9 boys and 16 girls. There are weekly meetings at which students can share any issues arising in community life, and supervised homework classes each evening. In normal times, students would stay at the Learning Centre and commute to Yangon to attend vocational courses. In the present emergency, however, the two colleges which received most of our students have had to close. Activities at the Learning Centre include our secondary online curriculum, sewing and tailoring, and a computer use course covering the parts and functioning of the computer, installation of Windows, and use of MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint. In view of the big changes taking place in our students’ lives as they move to work and educational environments, we make sure that counselling is always available.

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Some of the students living at the Learning Centre
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The Learning Centre is also the centre for a savings scheme serving the families of four NFE classes in the vicinity of Hlegu.

“We do our best to help the children be active participants in our community. As well as helping with the household chores, they come with us to market to purchase food for the month. They learn to budget and be careful in their spending, skills which will be useful in the future. When students are on work placements, we continue to support them by phone, and with visits.” (Daw Thein Thein Htay, Learning Centre Officer) “ We live like a family, helping the children resolve any difficulties. I am happy doing this work because we are helping children who really need our support. Living with, and being responsible for, children many hours a day is tiring of course, but seeing the children's affection is rewarding, and reduces the fatigue.” (Daw Hninn Lae Yee, Learning Centre Officer) “I am happy to make children happy. I consider myself as a kind of ladder to help our students reach their goals. My positive atti ude is like a shoulder for them to stand on, and learn skills that are sufficient for them to be able to reach their best. ” (U Win Paing Phyo Learning Centre Senior Officer)

A weekly meeting in progress at the Learning Centre

U Win Paing Phyo, Learning, Centre Senior Officer: “To help children become good human beings is the joy of my life, and makes me believe in, and respect myself, as a person. I am happy that I am working for children in need. Everyone should consider what is most meaningful for them. For me,

teaching children to create their own meaning in life is the most important thing. Many of our children have had to live through difficult circumstances. In response, I want to help them do as well as they can in life.

For children to progress, the most important thing is for them to feel happy and well, and comfortable where they are now. Then they will be able to make the best of their studies. However, it is important to fulfil those who are close to you first, through the meeting places that are close to you. That's why I want to help make everything convenient for the children we meet at the moment.

Ma Ei Myat Noe, achieving her dream: You may remember this student, Ei Myat Noe, from our appeal booklet in 2022. She had dreamed of following a nursing career, but, aged 9, was withdrawn from school, and sent to work in a brickyard when it became clear the lack of a birth certificate meant that she could not sit public exams. Of that that time she said:

“I felt so sad when I had to withdraw from the school. I thought I would

not be able to become a nurse, my dream since I was young.”

Ei Myat joined our NFE class and was able to catch up within one year. We arranged for the family to be registered, helped them through several crises (including medical treatment and rebuilding their home after it burned down) then supported Ei Myat to return to school. After that, she came to stay at the Learning Centre, where she followed our online curriculum and was able to complete a nursing auxiliary qualification. She told us:

“ When I studied the Nurse Aid training, I came to realize that the

science lessons we have learnt in our online class are very helpful to my learning here. I could answer the teachers’ question quickly though the other students on the nursing course could not. Now I am gaining practical experience at the hospital. I feel very happy to learn from actually caring for patients. My hobby and my practical work are now the same, and the dream that I have had since my childhood is nearer and nearer now . I am determined to work hard to reach my ambition and to improve my life.”

On a home visit to one of our families, and cooking a special meal at the Learning Centre

Although I do the best for the children, some may think that the situation is inconvenient. I have to understand when the children feel uncomfortable, listen to their complaints, and accept their feelings. We need to be able to understand ourselves and each other. Whether they love me or hate me, I never hesitate to guide them to what's good for them. Like a gardener, the happiest moment is when I see the flowers that I have planted, blooming. The more their lives improve, the more scope there is for further improvement. Each day, I think about the next steps to help them improve.

I would like help them become good people, create a genuinely caring community, and thus make the world a better place. For me, this Learning Centre community is the place to start. I will continue to work for them with focus.

Ey Myat Noe, working as note-taker in the brickyard in 2022, and now

8. Online education project: Our Online Education Project began in a small way during the pandemic, when lockdown regulations prevented gatherings. While the pandemic has eased, the civil war has led to chaos and insecurity across the country. Many teachers are on strike and most schools cannot provide a full service. The net effect of all this on children from poor backgrounds is to reduce further their chances of accessing education.

In normal times, a number of alumni of our NFE classes would go on to join state schools. However, given the current situation, we decided to provide secondary education to these students, online. Staff at a nearby orphanage asked if their children could be included too.

Thus, last year, we provided a full curriculum (Burmese, English, Maths, Science, Social Studies, Computer Studies, and Life-skills) to our 33 NFE alumni, and a supplementary curriculum (English, Maths and Computer Studies) to 18 orphanage students. Classes were provided centrally by expert teachers, with local facilitators helping children in small groups. Feedback was overwhelmingly positive:

"I enjoy science more with PALM because the classes include practical activities, unlike public school. I love doing practical while learning because it makes it fun and easier to understand. Thank you, PALM, and the donors and teachers.”

“At school, I found it hard to understand. In the PALM class, the lessons are explained in a way that makes everything clearer and easier to grasp.”

“ One thing that interested me the most was planting onion and researching its progress. I had never done it before. Then I enjoyed presenting the results online.”

“Our Social Studies teacher said that if we love ourselves, we can love the world. I will never forget that. ”

The security situation this year is worse, and the streets in many villages and cities have become dangerous places for young people. Bringing provision of secondary education online reduces the need for daily journeys to and from class, so helps keep our students safe.

This year we are including a further 54 children, mostly from internally displaced families (who could not enrol in local schools since they did not have the requisite ‘transfer certificates’ from their previous schools). So this year we are providing online education to 58 NFE alumni and 74 orphanage students.

9. Raising awareness in the community: While it is not possible to advocate directly to government ministries during the current emergency situation, we are able to organise events to raise community awareness, and motivate children and their parents alike. In November we celebrated the United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child day with gallery walks, quizzes and competitions to raise awareness of children’s rights, particularly in respect of child labour and domestic violence. Then in February we celebrated Myanmar Children’s Day with our own Talents of Stars competition.

Orphanage students visiting the Learning Centre to familiarise themselves with the computers they will be using in our online classes

Some comments from parents:

Active learning during online classes

“I have never experienced to participate in such event before . I am very happy to take part in this. I hope there will be another one in next year .” “ I am ashamed that I cannot read the words in the posters. If possible, I want PALM to teach us, the parents, too .”

Finance and admin team: In spite of the crashed economy, volatility of food prices, and challenging security situation, the finance and admin team have

Daw Aye Aye Thinn (PALM, Executive Director): “ Our education journey for the very needy children and youths has been continuing in the midst of different challenges, first the natural disaster of the pandemic, and now the man-made disaster of civil war. We are doing what we can to transform challenges into opportunities , and sometimes this happens unexpectedly. For example, in the past year, parents have worried about their children’s safety when they send them to work. It seems that many of them have decided to focus on their children’s education instead. So, unexpectedly, we found that the student drop-out rate was hugely down. Over the years, in spite of provision of social work and emergency support to families, the typical drop-out rate has been between 25% and 35%. However

last year, far fewer parents chose to withdraw their children in order to work; only 4% of students dropped out.

The finance and admin team: Ma Hnin Aye Moe (Admin & Logistics Assistant), Daw Lin Lin Htun (Admin & Finance Manager), and U Min Thant Kyaw (Finance Assistant) hy 3 fy v ay Wor | rs

Anyway, we at PALM are trying hard to support the best for those children and youths’ continuing education and careers. This year, we expanded our online class to include 3 more orphanages which are receiving ethnic minority children fleeing from armed conflict in their home areas. I was very pleased to receive a phone call from the HR manager of an engineering firm which had taken on some of our students as employees:

“The young people who came from PALM are honest and hard working and they have shown commitment… Please send CVs of other students if you have.”

Some of the teachers who attended our teacher training course said:

“Now my children enjoy to learn in my NFE class. They don’t want to rest even on weekends. Because of the teaching techniques I learned from your training, I could draw their attention with different learning games. Therefore, I am also happy to teach them.”

Distributing emergency supplies ,and our teacher U Ye Yint Kyaw presenting an emergency hamper to the grandmother of one of our students

Such comments give me a feeling of satisfaction. I feel much gratitude to the donors from S4SK who continued their donation with the big kind heart, for our children’s continuing education and for their better lives.

Dear Friend and Supporter,

I would like to thank you all for your support over the years. Some of you have been contributing to our work consistently since S4SK began as a charity in 2009. I feel huge gratitude to you all, and to our team in Myanmar whose dedication and courage never cease to amaze me. It is truly a joy and a privilege to work with them.

While the country situation of Myanmar continues to be difficult, over the past year we have managed to expand our provision of education to out-of-school children, and this year are able to include a number of orphanage children who have been separated from their families because of fighting in their home towns. S4SK is a small charity. Apart from the costs of our appeal, all admin costs at S4SK, including communication and travel, are covered by donation from the trustees, so you can be sure that roughly 99.5% of your donation will go to the work you see here. Please help us to continue to bring hope to the lives of these terribly disadvantaged children.

In friendship,

John McConnell (Managing Trustee, S4SK)

Please support our work:

1. By cheque or charity voucher to the treasurer at the address below, and made payable to Scholarships for Street Kids;

2. By electronic transfer to Scholarships for Street Kids Lloyds Bank plc, Branch: Hustlergate, Bradford, A/C No: 00376613, Sort Code: 30-91-12. Or use the IBAN code: GB68LOYD30911200376613. Please email the treasurer at: s4skfinance@gmail.com when you make a donation;

3. By regular donation (Standing Order) please email the treasurer to receive a donation form at: s4skfinance@gmail.com.

Gift Aid: If you are a taxpayer, you can also boost your donation by 25p of Gift Aid for every £1 you donate Gift Aid is reclaimed by the charity from the tax you pay for the current tax year. Your address is needed to identify you as a current UK taxpayer. In order to Gift Aid your donation you must tick the box below:

□ I want to Gift Aid my donation of £_____ to: Scholarships for Street Kids. I am a UK taxpayer and understand that if I pay less Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all my donations in that tax year it is my responsibility to pay any difference.

□ I am happy to receive further information relating to the work of S4SK

□ I am happy to receive information sent to my email address:…………………………………………. S4SK is a UK registered charity, No: 1131559. We will process your personal data in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation and Data Protection Act 2018. Our Privacy Policy is available from the Treasurer.

Name: ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Address: ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………Postcode:…………………………

Please return to: Erica Cadbury, Treasurer, S4SK, 72 Sun Street, Haworth, Keighley, BD22 8AH email: s4skfinance@gmail.com

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Tee ,
ae Independent examiner's report on the
ra accounts
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Section A Independent Examiner’s Report

Report to the trustees/ | =) ; members of | Scholarships for Street Kids
On accounts for the year | March 31° 2024 Charity no | 1131559 ended (if any)
Set out on pages | 4-7 . . Respective The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts.
responsibilities of The charity's trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year
trustees and examiner under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed. It is my responsibility to: —;. *® examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act, e to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act, and
e to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
Basis of independent My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given examiner’s statement by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair’ view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the
: statement below. Independent = |n connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention
examiner's statement (other than that disclosed below *) 1. which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requirements: * to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; and
e to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the Charities Act
have not been met; or
1. to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
- Please delete the words in the brackets if they do not apply.
Name: | John Cope
qualification(s) or* body LnPi bi bre yir Clow wa 0 jecormfan 5 (ifany): | Zug)and—p Wales
IER 1 March 2012

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||||||||||||| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |||c9|FORCHARITYENGLAND COMMISSIONAND|WALES Scholarship for Street Kids|1131559| ||| |Receipts|and|payments|accounts|CC16a| |For the|period|01/04/2023||31/03/2024| |from|°| |Section A|Receipts|and|payments| |Unrestrictedfunds|Restrictedfunds|Endowmentfunds|iia alSs|Last“aeyear| |tothe|nearest|£|to|the|nearest£|to the|nearest£|to the|nearest£|to the|nearest£| |A1|Receipts|:| |[GrantsTY fom wusts|88] CO| |po| |GitAid||e| |S™~=~iSC“(‘“C™C#C‘#Z,BBG‘Y|Lo||| |a|ee| |a 2|ee| |a|SO|0|Le| |Sub|SS|0||| |total (Gross income|for|S084|7aGte|ee|61.373| |AR)| |A2|Asset|and|investment|sales,| |(see|table).| |eeSubtotal[|es| |Total receipts|34,064|74,618|CL|__]]|108,681|||61,373| |A3|Payments| |Bank|charges|TTCC—tdCaSd | ee |ee| |is|[SouthEastAsia"]|dT|SCdCCOCSS POje| |EE ee||| |Dea||es ||ee eee| |=eee||eee|||es || |ee |rs ||Po| |Sub|ES 5||| ee 0| |total|____aavi6)|a]| |A4|Asset|and|investment| |purchases,|(see|table)| |ss|:| |Subtotal]|| |AS|Net of|receipts/(payments)|2,349|17,918,|[|20,267}||19,831] -| |A6 Transfers betweenfunds||TCT|T™C~SS CCC| |Cash|funds|last|year|end|46,594|33,262};|ei|79,856|99,689| |Cash funds|this year end|48,943|51,180}|||79,858|

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CCXX R1 accounts (SS) i

14/08/2024

Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period

						Unrestricted	Restricted	Endowment
Categories	Details					funds	funds	funds
						to nearest £	to nearest £	to nearest £
							es	ees
	(agree	balances	Totalcashfunds with receipts and payments				TT)	ee
					account(s))	OK	OK	OK
						Unrestricted	Restricted	Endowment
						funds	funds	funds
	Details					to nearest£	to nearest £	to nearest£
							ee	ee
a	; Fundtowhich Details asset belongs ===						Cost(optional) P	Currentvalue optional
	; Details					Fundtowhich asset belongs	Cost (optional) ont {OUD	Current value optional
-	; Fundtowhich Details liability relates —=						Amountdue optional	Whendue optional =
Signed by one or two trustees on behalfofallthe trustees	BN CAY	: \Signapu		3	\ AS	, PHALMeme a	Meme vm	Date of approval ¥.202
				coe		ErRiaudaA CADBILY
CCXXR2accounts(SS)					2			14/08/2024