Building brighter futures: constructing our boys’ boarding school

In countries like Uganda, the relentless cycle of poverty has created huge barriers that prevent most children from accessing an education that will enable them to reach their full potential.

Currently, 44% of children in Uganda do not even get the chance to complete their primary schooling – a statistic that School for Life is seeking to change by providing a quality, holistic education to students in rural Uganda.

It is through this provision of education that School for Life aims to provide its students with the opportunities they dream of and the chance to develop themselves and their communities to enjoy a bright future.

In January 2021, as part of our continued commitment to provide quality education to children who need it the most, we completed the construction of a girls’ boarding school to provide a safe, secure, learning-friendly environment for 300 of our Senior girls.

Our students at the school have thrived, free of many of the additional barriers to learning that girls face in Uganda and they are now able to concentrate fully on their studies.

It is with the incredibly generous support of our wonderful donors who contributed to our Buy a Brick campaign and who attended, sponsored and donated to our Black Tie Ball this year that we are now also constructing a boarding school for 300 of our Senior boys, to give them an equal chance at a bright future.

Below is a month by month progress update of how the boys’ boarding facility is coming together so far, thanks to you, our amazing supporters.

April 2021: preparing the site

Work officially commenced on our boys’ boarding school in April 2021, with our wonderful construction team working hard to build the access road to the school before establishing the site and laying the foundations for the facility.

Below is the hand drawn sketch by our Construction Manager Dickson, which gives you an idea of the size of the project and a bird’s eye view of the layout of the boys’ boarding school once it’s complete!

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May 2021: all rain, no shine – but lots of bricks

Despite heavy rains affecting the production of bricks and deliveries of building materials to the school site, construction pressed on in May with our team completing the foundation works for the school this month.

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June 2021: the walls are coming up!

With lightning speed our construction team laid the bricks to erect the walls of each block of the boarding school. Take a look at Block D and Block C of the facility (pictured below) coming together!

Preparations also began to place roofing on some of the blocks, including Block B (pictured below) where roof rafters were placed ready for the next stage of construction.

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With COVID-19 continuing to affect Uganda on an increasing scale this month, causing difficulties with sourcing of materials and staff for the school’s construction, we moved our construction team onsite to ensure works remained on track.

More photos below show the progress made in June.

July 2021: doors, windows and more

July brought a lot of exciting news, with:

  • Doors and windows installed for Block D

  • Roofing installed for Block A

  • Completion of the retaining wall behind the schools’ latrine

  • Roof frames installed for Block C and D

We can’t wait to share more updates with you as our boys’ boarding facility continues to come to life.

Enabling our students to have a boarding school to attend is truly life-changing and no doubt stories of success, hope, and dreams turning into reality will be born out of these walls. Not just for this generation, but for generations to come!

Thank you for being part of our journey and standing with us to ensure all children have access to a quality education.

Success Stories
Goretti

Sweet and shy Goretti lives with her aunt, uncle and cousins in a small house in the local village. When Goretti was younger, she moved in with her aunt and uncle because her parents could no longer look after her. She was one of our first students at Katuuso Primary, starting in 2011 when she was just 4 years old. Now, Goretti is in Senior One at Mbazzi High School, and is relishing the honour of being a high school student in her community - something that is taken for granted in Australia, but in Uganda, represents freedom and opportunity. Goretti also loves attending School for Life because she hopes to one day become a pilot in Uganda - a dream which she knows can only be reached with the help of a good education.

Violah

Violah has been at School for Life since since she was six years old. Sadly, Violah has experienced hardship no child should ever deal with. Her Dad passed away three years ago, leaving her Mum without the financial means to support her family - so she left Violah and her siblings with their elderly grandmother. Every day, Violah has to wake up at 5am to fetch water, cook meals and make sure that her younger sisters are properly looked after. Then she walks half an hour to get to school. Despite this adversity, Violah has flourished at school and has made many friends. She loves that School for Life is "helping me to build a future". After finishing school, Violah hopes to become a teacher to help other children.

Umar

Umar is one of our best performing students at Mbazzi Riverside High School - but life has not always been easy for Umar. His father abandoned the family in 2015, leaving his mother to struggle to support her five children on her own. School for Life has provided Umar with opportunities that may never else have eventuated for him. Umar begun his journey with School for Life at Katuuso Primary School, where his academic ability was quickly revealed. Now, he is a thriving member of our Senior 1 class and a formidable wing on the football team. With a love for mathematics, Umar is set on studying electronic engineering after finishing his senior studies - a goal which he is the first to admit is now within reach thanks to the skills and resources provided to him by School for Life.

Rose Nambooze

Rose is a 32‐year‐old single mother of one. She started working with SFL in 2013, after taking part in our tailoring training program. Prior to working with us, she was unemployed and living in her father's home helping to care for her father, who had cataracts, and his farm.
Thanks to her full time employment, Rose was able to save enough money to pay for an eye operation and restore her father's sight, allowing him to return to work as a mechanic. Now, Rose has moved into her own home and no longer relies on her father financially. 

Joseph

Joseph is one of our Special Needs teachers at Katuuso. After surviving a severe case of malaria at age four, he was left permanently deaf. He was raised by his single mother and attended a nursery school for the handicapped and later transferred to a school for the Deaf in Kampala. He eventually mastered sign language and pursued a university degree in education. Joseph decided to become a teacher so that he could give the gift of education to others who are hearing impaired.

Teddy Namatovu

Teddy is a participant in the Kumi Tailoring Program and four of her five children attend Katuuso Primary School. She and her husband farm two acres of land, which supplies fluctuating revenue. Participation in the Kumi Tailoring Project has secured income to reliably pay for school fees, nutritious meals and renovations to the family home. Teddy has gained a great deal of self-esteem from her ability to support her family and she takes pride in independently financing the education of all five children. Teddy has also been working on her numeracy and administration skills. She was appointed Treasurer of the tailoring group and will be responsible for keeping records of their savings.

Flaviah Nassaazi

Flaviah Nassaazi started working at Katuuso Primary and Vocational School in 2011. Prior to cooking at the school, she and her husband were subsistence farmers. They worked tirelessly for small yields and minimal income to support their family. Flaviah's cooking job not only enables her to pay school fees for her children, but she has also invested in a local barbershop business. She is now passing her cooking skills onto her eldest son Frank, who has also joined the school's cooking staff. Flaviah and her husband attend the adult literacy classes offered weekly at the school. Her English and reading have improved immensely, as well as her confidence.

Rachel

In 2010, Rachel began as a cleaner at Katuuso Primary and Vocational School. She was working to save money to study to be a teacher at University. Thanks to Barrie and Simone Goldsmith, her dream of studying came true and she is now fully qualified.