Zambia Partnership:

Since 2011 Cranleigh School has been partnering with Beyond Ourselves to offer quality education to vulnerable children in the Copperbelt region of Zambia. In particular Cranleigh has a long lasting and meaningful relationship with Kawama Community School in Kitwe. Over this time, the generous support from the Cranleigh community has provided the building and maintenance of six classrooms, a toilet block and kitchen, and given nearly a 1,000 children access to a high standard of primary education.

The District Education Board cite Kawama Community School as an excellent example of practice for other Community Schools in the Copperbelt. Many of our students have had the opportunity to visit Kawama and this reflection from the most recent trip highlights the impact of these trips on our students and staff.

During October half term, 19 Cranleigh students accompanied by four members of staff were given the opportunity to take part in Cranleigh’s annual trip to Zambia in support of Beyond Ourselves, a charity that has made it their mission to help improve the quality of education in Zambia. While we were there we got the chance to explore and learn about many different sides of Zambia, from the more rural Nsobe Game Park, which was immersed in nature with animals freely roaming around, to the busy local markets, the dynamic church community, the welcoming homes in Kitwe and of course Kawama School. Each place we visited, although different from each other, all shared the same sense of community, pride and joy. This was unlike anything we had experienced before. We all went into this trip wanting to help Beyond Ourselves make a difference and have a positive and helpful impact on the children’s lives. I don’t think we realised how big of an impact this trip would have on us. While we aimed to support and uplift the children and communities in Zambia, they taught us invaluable lessons about resilience, gratitude, and the power of human connection. At Kawama School, we witnessed firsthand how Beyond Ourselves has transformed the educational opportunities available to children. We had the privilege of working with the students, assisting in classrooms, and engaging in activities that encouraged both learning and play. The students’ enthusiasm for education, despite the lack of opportunities somewhere like Cranleigh might offer, was deeply inspiring. It was a reminder of the privilege of access to quality education and how important it is to cherish and support such opportunities.

This trip was not just about charity donations; it was about mutual growth and understanding. As we learnt from Jodie Collins, the International Director of Beyond Ourselves, charity work and aid shouldn’t be about endless and aimless giving; rather it should be about lending a hand up and constructing a long term plan to help guide communities in the right direction towards development. Beyond Ourselves emphasises the importance of collaborating with local communities and aiming to promote self-sufficiency through various livelihood and development projects. Their ongoing focus on their teacher training programme and feeding programme have been vital in the development of education in Zambia. Beyond Ourselves recognises the importance of well instructed teachers who are able to deliver effective but most importantly engaging lessons and also the link between education and nutrition and how access to regular meals is essential in improving the learning process.

Beyond Ourselves’ aim to live ‘beyond themselves’ is truly inspiring and we hope to continue cultivating this culture of selflessness among our Cranleigh community. We left Zambia with hearts full of gratitude, having learned lessons that will stay with us for a lifetime. It reminded us of the importance of stepping outside our comfort zones, embracing different cultures, and understanding the world from new perspectives. As we return to Cranleigh, we carry with us a renewed commitment to contribute meaningfully to the global community and to support initiatives like Beyond Ourselves that create real and lasting change.

Tiana Iiriti

Reflections by Teacher & Old Cranleighan Ollie Edwards

I am an Old Cranleighan and went on the Zambia trip as a student in 2012. Twelve years later and now a teacher at Cranleigh, it was wonderful to have the opportunity to visit Zambia and Kawama School again, as I remember my time there very fondly.

The trip itself has changed since I went on it as a student, and Kawama School as well as Zambia have developed in many ways, which I have found interesting to reflect on. The first thing I noticed after landing in Zambia was the airport in Ndola! In 2012, the airport was tiny and I vividly remember suitcases being hurled through what looked like a cupboard door to passengers waiting inside the terminal. Today, the airport is significantly larger and more modern as a result of Chinese investment, one example of the growing Chinese presence in Zambia.

At the beginning of the trip, students now get the opportunity to visit the beautiful Nsobe Game Reserve, a 2 hour drive from Ndola. This is an excellent addition to the trip, giving the team the opportunity to relax after the long journey and acclimatize to life in Zambia. During the two days at Nsobe, we undertook a range of activities including a visit to a rural community school, a jeep safari (where we saw giraffes, zebras and different species of antelopes), and a tour of the snake park (which I personally found terrifying given my phobia of snakes!)

We then travelled from Nsobe to Kitwe where we spent the Sunday attending a service at a local church, and had the privilege of listening to their incredible choir. This was certainly one of the highlights of the trip. The second half of the trip was spent at Kawama Community School in Kitwe, which Cranleigh school continues to support. It has changed significantly since I first visited and in fact, as the bus pulled into the school, I barely recognised it! There is now a wall that surrounds the school to improve security, a new classroom block for the pre-school, a new kitchen and a modern toilet block. The Church hall which sits in the middle of the school has also been refurbished with a new roof and tiled flooring.

Whilst at Kawama, Cranleigh students assisted in lessons such as Maths and Science, taught first aid and sports and participated in some fun lessons such as making (and playing) musical instruments. The itinerary at Kawama is different to the trip I went on 12 years ago; then, our focus was painting a mural on the wall of the main classroom block, which reads ‘Kawama and Cranleigh, Learning and Growing Together in Partnership,’ (which I am pleased to say is still there), whereas now Cranleigh students assist the Kawama teachers in activities and games that help enrich learning. We also had the opportunity to observe some Jolly Phonics lessons, a programme that Beyond Ourselves has introduced at its partner schools in Zambia and is working to roll out nationally.

These lessons incorporated a range of fun and interactive activities and were highly effective at teaching students phonics. It is very encouraging to see that the money Cranleigh raises go to such a great cause. This programme is having a significant impact and Beyond Ourselves have now trained 5,746 teachers in Jolly Phonics across Zambia, which has enabled them to go on to impact the literacy levels of over 195,990 pupils.

Whilst there have been many changes at Kawama, there are things that have stayed the same; in particular the warmth, friendliness and positivity from the students and staff at the school, which makes the trip so memorable for every Cranleighan that is fortunate enough to go on it. I also feel very fortunate to have been able to go on the trip for a second time, and greatly look forward to seeing how the partnership continues to develop and grow in forthcoming years.

The story of Beyond Ourselves, by Jodie Collins, Director

Beyond Ourselves came in to being out of the desire of one family for their business not just to be high performing but also to make a difference in the world and to live ‘beyond themselves’.

Through family friends they made a connection with people in Ndola, Zambia who had a heart and vision to offer an education to the orphans and most vulnerable in their community. Seeing the heart and vision of the local leaders, the team at Beyond Ourselves offered to partner with them to see dreams become reality.

Since 2008, Beyond Ourselves has partnered with community schools in Zambia to bring quality education and nutrition to some of the most vulnerable children in those communities. They have supported the teachers and senior staff of the partner community schools, by offering training and professional development with the aim that they will be able to offer a high standard of education and enable these children to fulfil their education and ultimately to break the cycle of poverty. They have also provided financial assistance for teachers’ salaries, school feeding programmes and high school bursaries.

Over the years the professional support offered to the partner schools widened to include additional community schools and, in 2018, Beyond Ourselves also started conducting training with government schools and those in the private sector, specifically Jolly Phonics English literacy training.

This has developed to creating a contextualised Jolly Phonics Teachers Guide that has adapted the British Jolly Phonics guide to the Zambian culture and context. This key resource has been ratified by the Zambian Ministry of Education Curriculum Development Centre and plays a significant role in supporting the Primary English Syllabus in Zambia.

Beyond Ourselves believes literacy has the power to change lives. As UNESCO state “Literacy empowers and liberates people. Beyond its importance as part of the right to education, literacy improves lives by expanding capabilities which in turn reduces poverty, increases participation in the labour market and has positive effects on health and sustainable development.”

Beyond Ourselves also facilitates Dream and Dare days for young people in Zambia. These interactive, 6-hour life skills workshops are designed to empower young people by addressing key topics that shape their identity, relationships and well-being in a safe environment.

The team at Beyond Ourselves are passionate about opening up the conversation around international aid and what sustainable global development could look like as we work in partnership with one another. This is why they are so thrilled to have such a strong and lasting partnership with Cranleigh School.

For more information on Beyond Ourselves visit the link below:

Beyond Ourselves

we hope to continue cultivating this culture of selflessness among our Cranleigh community

— Tiana Iiriti

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