UK Registered Charity 1197987
KWEST
Kenya Watamu Educational Support Trust
is
A Charitable Incorporated Organisation
(A company with no liability)
Report and Financial Statements For the period covering our Registration –
18.02.2022 to End of Year 04.05.2023
Charity Number 1197987
UK Registered Charity 1197987
Trustees -
Lesley Churm
CEO and Founder
Christopher Churm Dawn Kay
Our Aims and Objectives
Our charity’s purposes, as set out in our Charitable Incorporated Organisation Constitution whose voting members are its trustees, are to:
- benefit the public of Watamu, Kenya by advancing and developing the education of children in their community, who are socially and economically disadvantaged, by providing and resourcing library, learning centres and local schools with books and other educational resources.
Ensuring our work delivers our aims
This is our first review since we registered as a CIO in February 2022. It looks at our successes, the key activities and the benefits it has brought to this group of people we are set up to help. This review also helps us to ensure our aim, objectives and activities remain focused on our stated purposes. We have referred to guidance contained in the Charity Commissions general guidance on public benefit in particular the trustees consider how planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives they have set.
The Focus of our work
Our main objective for the year has been to establish the first free Community Library in Watamu, to send more children’s books and educational resources, and to establish a safe and energetic hub of reading activity with literacy support. Our secondary objective was to establish links with Primary Schools in and around the Watamu area, to provide dedicated Literacy support and access to reading books once a week for each school. The strategies we used to meet these aims included.
- Providing a Permanent Community Library in Watamu at a location accessible to the local community either on foot or by local transport (Tuk Tuk)
UK Registered Charity 1197987
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Getting the message to, and working with local people, to encourage their children to make use of the library and thereby improving their education and future prospects.
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Working with schools in Watamu to provide them with regular access to books and Literacy Support.
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Establishing a reliable and value for money method of transporting large volumes of books and supplies to the library from the UK to the library in Watamu, Kenya.
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Establishing links with Primary schools and individuals in the UK to donate books, and provide information to their pupils on where, how and why the books will be used.
How our activities deliver public beneft
Our main activities and who we try to help are described below. All our charitable activities focus on the provision of literacy support and are undertaken to further our charitable purposes for the public benefit.
Background
In 2020 Kenya had an estimated child population of 53% (19 million) with an annual growth of 2.2%. Watamu is a small coastal town with a very high child population and over 30 schools. Employment centres on tourism and fishing, with many living a basic day to day existence on £2-3 a day. Literacy amongst adults is low and many parents did not complete education beyond primary level or are illiterate. English is a third language for many in this region but all exams except Swahili are in English. This puts children in this area at a severe disadvantage in terms of education and economic opportunities.
There are two government primary schools, which are heavily oversubscribed, and generally attended by children from the poorest families, even then there are still parental costs towards education. Classrooms have inadequate facilities in terms of chairs, tables, books and other resources such as pens, paper, course books and reading books. It is not uncommon to see one teacher with 80 children.
There are many private schools of differing quality and facilities dependent on parental ability to pay. However, access to reading
UK Registered Charity 1197987
materials and structured literacy support is limited or non-existent. Children are taught to recognise words and repeat but there is no or little comprehension. This is impacting on their ability to understand what they are reading and has impact across the curriculum.
Kenyan Education is going through a transition to a Competency-based curriculum which includes 7 core competencies; Communication and Collaboration, Critical thinking and problem solving, Creativity and Imagination, Digital Literacy, Learning to Learn, Self-efficacy. These require the ability to read, comprehend, evaluate, create. The schools are not equipped to deliver these programmes and skills without adequate resources and literate children. This is the gap in which we focus our activities.
Who used and benefted from our services.
Our objectives were to support the education of children in Watamu, with a particular focus on keeping girls in education as they are particularly vulnerable and educationally disadvantaged. By improved literacy, children will be able to stay in education longer- beyond primary - and acquire better educational and economic outcomes. As funding is limited, we focussed initially on establishing a free library and encouraging local children to use the library at weekends and during school holidays.
The KWEST Children’s Library is located in an area of Watamu known locally as Richland, it is accessible from the main road in a secure compound. It was previously a children’s nursery school so was an ideal building. It has a large central room divided by a small low wall into two distinct areas. There is a smaller room and large corridor and a secured storage room. Rental of the building is one of our expenses paid every 3 months. It is open every weekend and every day during school holidays. We also fund transportation for those children who do not live within safe and easy walking distance.
Equal access to our service is very important in terms of religion and gender.
It was and is important that local people took ownership of the library so although we purchased cleaning and painting materials it was a group of local people who cleaned and painted the interior. On the suggestion of the local Chief, we named it Watamu Community Library in order to
UK Registered Charity 1197987
benefit and attract the wider community. This new building sign is in English and Swahili. More recently, a local artist donated her time to refresh the interior with contributions from the children which has created a bright learning environment. Paints and brushes were paid for by KWEST which was approved by the trustees.
It has always been important to ensure that the children have a chair to sit on and a table to sit at when writing. This is something they often lack at school. The trustees approved the purchase of size specific chairs and tables from a local supplier. As attendances increased it has been necessary to purchase further tables and chairs. Due to heat, humidity and dust it is important to protect the books thus a local carpenter was employed to construct simple shelving in the storage room.
The library was initially stocked with books the trustees had previously donated. By June 2022 we were in receipt of enough donations to allow us to ship thousands of good quality reading books donated by schools and individuals in the UK. The shipping company, Najpac, specialises in doorto-door transport, boxing and documentation. We established a discount on these costs and were very satisfied with the trouble-free service provided. Shipping costs are the largest charity outgoing.
Children from ages 4 -13 of varying reading and writing abilities spend between 3-4 hrs at the library on each visit. There are regular repeat attenders who have made significant improvements in their reading, some moving from guided reading to self-reading. During school holidays attendance rises dramatically and peaked at over 100 during the 7 week break November to January. Parents are actively encouraging their children to use the library as it keeps the children occupied in a learning environment during these periods and therefore keeps them safe from bad influences. This is a major benefit to the children, parents and schools.
On arrival children are welcomed and provided with a books at their appropriate reading level. Our Literacy Team have got to know the children well and are now able to leave out books which the children can self-select, and they sit together in age/reading level groups. Once settled the team then circulate between groups providing individual and group support. The focus is on understanding words and stories, retelling, and acting with regular spelling and grammar input. KWEST has provided word
UK Registered Charity 1197987
games and phonic support materials, paper, pens and crayons creating a vibrant hub of activity.
All our activities have been led by our Library and Project Manager, Consolatar Nanzala, a Kenyan National and Watamu resident. She developed a dedicated team of 3 volunteers, local women, and due to the increase in demand for the service, in November 2022, the trustees approved that all would receive the payment of a monthly wage.
The team receive regular training in Literacy and reading techniques. This is provided by the CEO Lesley Churm in person when she visits Watamu, and via e- communications. This is proving to be very effective and of great benefit to the team.
OUTREACH
To provide greater public benefit, and to reach more children across the community KWEST now provides a Schools Outreach Literacy Support Service. In October 2021, working with the Head of English, we began taking books to Watamu Primary, a local Government Primary School. The decision was made to focus on developing the reading and comprehension skills of years 4-6 and hold an outdoor literacy hour every week, known as a Reading Baraza. This very quickly became a popular and successful service and much was learnt from this experience. In November 2021, when 2 trustees were in Watamu they were able to experience a reading Baraza first hand and it was decided to expand the service to other schools. On that visit, two further schools signed up for a weekly Reading/Literacy hour and from teacher recommendations 2 further schools by June 2022. In January 2023 we were invited into more schools and now provide books and literacy support to 11 schools and over 3000 children on a weekly basis. Every child can now read their own book or read with a friend- this is of major benefit to them and the schools. At most schools the teachers work with our team to provide literacy support and development. Children are encouraged to act out words and stories to demonstrate learning and associate reading with pleasure.
UK Registered Charity 1197987
Due to the distances between the schools, and the need to transport books and the Literacy Team, the trustees approved weekly payments for Tuk Tuk hire, which is a further charity outgoing.
We discovered that other local education-based agencies struggle to be admitted to schools and are given very limited time with a limited group of children. KWEST is invited into schools for 1 1/2hrs each week. The service we provide has now become an integral part of the participating schools’ curriculum. To extend our service to more schools and reach more children will require employing a second Literacy Support Team, this is a future aim once we can raise sufficient donations to fund wages and transport. This requires a major fundraising drive and may not be achieved in the next financial year without additional significant and regular donations.
The impact of our service is constantly being assessed by ourselves and the Head teachers from the 11 schools. They all report significant improvements in their pupils speaking, reading and writing English which is improving standards and is aiding the teaching of the new Competency based Curriculum.
Financial Review
Against the backdrop of limited financial resources and insecurities over funding partially caused by a Global Pandemic and Inflationary effects of economies, we have continued to grow and develop our services. With sound financial management and the support of our trustees, staff and volunteers we have generated sufficient funds to cover all our activities in Kenya. No-one in the UK takes any income from the charity and minimal amounts are spent on marketing and other administrative needs.
The charity has produced and posted a receipt and payments set of accounts (CC16a) as annual income is below £25,000.
Principal Funding Sources
Prior to incorporation we began with a JustGiving campaign involving friends, family and business associates. The platform deducts a small percentage for costs thus the charity does not receive the full donated
UK Registered Charity 1197987
amount. We are now registered on JustGiving as a charity and so costs are born by the donor. Although not a sustainable source of income, it did provide KWEST with an opening balance on incorporation.
We focussed on developing further sources of income from individuals, charitable organisations, UK schools and businesses who have donated directly to KWEST.
Plans for Future Periods
In light of the current economic climate affecting the charity sector and especially small charities, the trustees agreed to focus on a series of small fundraising events and raising the profile of the charity. Several events are planned for 2023.
We have also developed the role of Charity Ambassador whereby a dedicated supporter has responsibility of furthering our aims and objectives and is able to raise funds, supported by the trustees.
We have opened a second library in Watamu, at and with Kenya Wildlife Service, Temple Point. This was a project that began before we had charitable status and was delayed due to the Pandemic. However, this is an exciting new resource for an area of Watamu that has a large and extremely disadvantaged child population. It also allows access for those requiring walking support or a ramp. The only costs this will incur will be transport for staff, water and biscuits for the children. This facility will double as a centre for Conservation Education and the children will be given talks and presentations about protecting their local environment. We are involved in the planning of other educational activities, in conjunction with KWS and other environment agencies, to further local education on these issues which is an exciting development. This environmental link will help to attract other sources of income.
Structure, Government and Management
The organisation is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation limited by guarantee, incorporated on 18[th] February 2022. Prior to this all activities were conducted outside of the Charity Commission regulations but sought to abide by good practice.
There are no changes to the original trustees and no plans to add to this structure at the present time.
UK Registered Charity 1197987
Declarations
The trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s Trustees
Signature
Full name. Lesley Churm
Position CEO Date 17.6.2023
| Charity Name KWEST |
Charity Name KWEST |
Charity Name KWEST |
Charity Name KWEST |
CC16a | |
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| For the period from |
Period start date 2/22/2022 |
To |
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| Section A Receipts and payments | |||||
| A1 Receipts Donations 9,171 71 - - - - - - - 9,171 - - Sub total - Total receipts 9,171 A3 Payments Bank charges(16/07) 242 Printing & Fundraising Costs 780 Najpac 1,125 Library Expenses + Rent 3,859 Wages(Kenya) 1,569 - - - - Sub total 7,575 - - Sub total - Total payments 7,575 Net of receipts/(payments) 1,596 A5 Transfers between funds - A6 Cash funds last year end 1,684 Cash funds this year end 3,280 Unrestricted funds to the nearest £ Sub total(Gross income for AR) A2 Asset and investment sales, (see table). A4 Asset and investment purchases, (see table) |
to the nearest £ Restricted funds |
to the nearest £ Endowment funds |
Total funds to the nearest £ |
Last year to the nearest £ |
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9,171 - - - - - - - 9,171 |
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242 780 1,125 3,859 1,569 - - - - 7,575 |
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1,596 - 1,684 3,280 |
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Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
| Categories B1 Cash funds B2 Other monetary assets B3 Investment assets B5 Liabilities B4 Assets retained for the charity’s own use Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees |
Details Details Details Details Details Signature Total cash funds (agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) |
to nearest £ to nearest £ - - - - - - - - Agreement Error OK to nearest £ to nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - - Cost (optional) - - - - - Cost (optional) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Print Name LesleyChurm Chris Churm Unrestricted funds Restricted funds Unrestricted funds Restricted funds Fund to which asset belongs Fund to which asset belongs Fund to which liability relates Amount due (optional) |
to nearest £ Endowment funds |
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| to nearest £ Endowment funds |
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| When due (optional) |
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| Date of approval |
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| LesleyChurm | |||
| Chris Churm |