DECEMBER UPDATE 2

£4788 was the magnificent sum raised through generous pledges and matched funding from the Big Give Christmas Challenge. These funds will help Extra Mile to provide its 128 students in this academic year with breakfasts, safe drinking water, exercise and text books and a reading scheme to improve literacy. The students, staff, governors and trustees thank all who pledged support and for the backing of the Big Give. 

The end of the Autumn Term sees all students taking internal examinations to help them prepare for their national tests, especially those taking their NPSE and BECE examinations in the summer of 2020.

Extra Mile receives regular donations from Lee and Hazel Swingler of Orchard Corporate. Their latest donation is a large number of high quality notebooks which will be of particular use to our older students for subject notebooks. We are grateful for their continuing generous support.

The students, staff, governors and trustees of Extra Mile wish all our supporters, those who follow us and those who have given so generously in 2019 a very happy Christmas and a joyful 2020.

The month has started with a number of important fund raising activities including the latest in the series of The Great Benn Hall Table Top Sales. Trustees are looking forward to being supported in The Big Give Charity Christmas Challenge, which starts on December 3rd. Please see the separate page on the website for further details.

Trustee Tim Feast returned from his busy visit to Goderich in Sierra Leone. In addition to supporting the school in operation, he conducted six sessions for teachers from our own and four other neighbouring schools to continue their professional development.. The sessions were very well received and across the 6 sessions were 108 attendances. He initiated a quality assurance programme for local partner schools involving Critical Partners and liaised with our medical partners from the local Health Centre. His report to the trustees will help to inform their decisions at their next meeting in January 2020.

Trustee David Gelthorp-Hill, with a small group of other trustees, has been working on the charity’s structure to take it forward from 2020.The charity is looking to recruit more trustees, volunteers and those whose skills can be used well to support our mission in Sierra Leone. If you would like to be part of the process in 2020 please look at our webpage on volunteering.

NOTES FROM FREETOWN-NOVEMBER 2019 from Trustee Tim Feast

There were many positive signs of improvement in the capital since my last visit 18 months ago:

The airport continues to be upgraded including the potential to secure your visa on arrival.

The Seacoach ferry from the airport to Aberdeen has a new terminal at the Aberdeen end, complete with shops, refreshments, travel agents, TV screens, Wifi and fans to keep you cool.

Roads in many areas continue to improve including a much needed bypass of Lumley, to speed our journey from Aberdeen to Goderich.

Continuing construction boom including new hotels, restaurants, health centres, schools, churches as well as private dwellings.

Hundreds of ‘flying foxes circling the school on my first Saturday in the country. They eventually roosted in the big tree next to the school. Locals said they had lost their bearings in the stormy weather.

There continues to be problems with the power supply, particularly as it tends to cut out as soon as the sun goes down. Continuing problem with obtaining a wifi signal, the provider merely saying the service was down.

Some evidence of the positive impact of the government's cleaning day initiative which happens every 1st Saturday of the month. Still not great but certainly improving cleanliness. Sierra Leone remains a very beautiful country.