Tag: quality education

International Day of the Girl Child

Here are just some of the reasons why vulnerable girls in Malawi need our help today. You can also read about some of the success stories!

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Sarah’s blog 11/10/25

Whilst we are supporting both boys and girls of all ages, girls living in extreme poverty are still living in a very unequal world. International Day of the Girl Child highlights some of the inequalities they face and how we can support them.

Many of the young people we help to support are living with extended family or with one parent. In Malawi it is illegal to marry girls off when they are children. It still happens. Girls are at greater risk of dying during childbirth as well as missing out on their education.

We have matched several girls with sponsors whose families couldn’t afford to feed them. They thought it was better to give their eldest daughter away to get married at age 11 or 12 as they would get a dowry and therefore be able to feed the rest of their family. Having a sponsor means that these very vulnerable girls are still in school, receive a monthly food parcel (if at primary school) or free secondary education with free school lunches (if at Bright Futures Secondary School). The impact of education, food and having a sponsor is huge. We are highlighting these inequalities and the challenges girls face on International Day of the Girl Child, to draw attention to how difficult things are for these vulnerable girls.

If girls do not have access to sanitary towels, they are not welcome at school for one week every month whilst they have their period. Imagine the shame they must feel for having a normal bodily function. Since we sent some donated hand turn Singer sewing machines, girls have been making reusable sanitary towels which have been given out to all who need them. This gives girls and young women confidence, dignity and the same access to education as boys have.

In Chitipa District in the far north, where the community we are partnering with is situated, teenage pregnancies are very high. Thankfully, by being able to keep teenagers in education and giving them opportunities and having choices and chances they wouldn’t normally have had, at Bright Futures Secondary School there have only been two teenage pregnancies since the school opened. (the statistics are in the link below).

Why vulnerable teenagers need sponsors

In the link to another blog below, you can see we celebrated with a party for Catherine, Emily and Naomi, passing their secondary school leavers exams and also the s3 students who had passed their junior certificates of education (s2 national exams). None of them would have had this opportunity if it wasn’t for them having sponsors to support their education. We are so grateful for each and everyone of our sponsors. Thank you!

Celebrating the success of 3 girls

We have girls in S1 who are each needing a sponsor to help support the cost of their education at Bright Futures Secondary School. This is a small school which was built specifically to meet the needs of the very vulnerable teenagers in the community who can’t pay for their secondary education at local state run schools. Sponsorship helps cover; free education, free school lunches, free uniform, shoes and other clothes, school bags & water bottles and free stationery.

We have managed to match two girls in S1 with sponsors but these girls are still waiting for your help. It is still only £25 per month to sponsor a young person. You can sponsor as an individual, a family, friends sharing the cost, or your church, school, club or business could be a sponsor. Will you give the gift of education and a brighter future today? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Imagine the difference 5 friends could make to a girl if they each paid £5 per month to support her education. Could this be you and your friends? Thanks to everyone who supports us through sponsorship and donations. Together, on International Day of the Girl Child, we can continue Changing Lives (in) Malawi, Sarah x

We have a few small projects that we are fundraising for with our partners DonorSee DonorSee Here is one of them from which girls are benefitting. https://donorsee.com/project/28717?share=1

(I had a short video chat with the S1 class last week, thanks to their headteacher, and asked each of the students a couple of questions. I’ve written their replies under their photos. Sarah) contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com

Schollastica helps at home by sweeping the inside of her home and the surrounding area and enjoys playing netball with her friends
Lusubiro’s favourite subject is biology and she loves playing rugby
Ethel loves to read and so far at school is enjoying having school uniform and books
Tusalifye is enjoying being at Bright Futures Secondary School and lives a short distance away. She helps at home by sweeping and fetching water.
Veronica said she likes all the books at school and that they get a free school lunch each day. Her favourite sport is netball.
Susan said she really likes school so far as the uniform, shoes, bag and lunches are all for free. Her favourite subject is maths.
At home, Nellie helps with digging their small farmland and fetching water. She likes reading books and her favourite subject is geography.

Bright Futures: Helping Vulnerable Students Thrive

Thanks so much to All Saints CofE School, Maidenhead and to the charity Sal’s Shoes for making a difference to these vulnerable teenagers.

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Sarah’s blog 8/10/25

When I was a teenager, I always loved going to choose new stationery ready for returning to school after the summer holidays and, most years, I’d get a new school bag and unform and shoes too…although I really disliked our brown school uniform! There was no question that, although there wasn’t lots of spare money, there was always enough to buy the things that my siblings and I needed.

The students that have just started in S1 at Bright Futures Secondary School are living in extreme poverty. Their families cannot afford enough food, let alone any money to buy school uniform, shoes and stationery. So, last week, they were overwhelmed when gifts were handed out to each of them. They’ve never had presents like this, that we and our children all take for granted.

Thanks to individual supporters, we were able to send new and preloved school uniform; shirts and blouses and skirts and trousers. I got in touch with a wonderful charity called Sal’s Shoes who have helped us out once before. They kindly agreed to give us shoes for the students at Bright Futures Secondary School. We (and the students) are so grateful for this support. Thank you for the wonderful work you do at Sal’s Shoes, collecting and sorting preloved outgrown shoes and sending them on to protect vulnerable children’s feet.

Also, All Saints C of E School, Maidenhead, had contacted us to see if we could use some uniform that they no longer needed as they had changed their school badge. Of course we said yes and were delighted with everything that they sent. The S1 students were delighted to receive their new back packs which they had no idea they would be getting. Thanks so much for these! The clothes from All Saints C of E School, Maidenhead, will be distributed over the next few weeks amongst other vulnerable children.

I had bought water bottles for the new students which I filled with; toothbrush & toothpaste, small bars of soap, pens, pencils, rulers, erasers and sharpeners. Each student was also given some exercise books. They were amazed as they’ve never had a day of receiving this many gifts all at once and certainly not lovely new presents like this. These donations will really help to motivate them to work hard. You can see in one of the photos, one of the girls is overcome with tears of happiness because she didn’t expect to receive all these lovely gifts.

There are two videos in which the S1 students are thanking Sal’s Shoes for their new shoes and also thanking All Saints School for their school bags. If you have donated school uniform, shoes, pencils etc…you can see where your donations are going and how much it means to the recipients. Thank you everyone.

We try to match each of these vulnerable students with a sponsor to help support financially with their education. As well as paying the teachers, part of the sponsorship money goes towards providing a substantial free school lunch each day. For most of these students, it is their only meal of the day and their families can share the small amount of food they have with the remaining family members. Many of these students are orphans, living with extended family. Many in the community have been affected by AIDS and HIV.

We still need to match the following students with sponsors; Veronica, Susan, Nellie, John, Wakisa, Lindwell, Schollastica, Robert, Brian, Lumbiro, Esther, Tusalifye and Ethel. That’s 13 vulnerable young people who need your help. There is an old saying ‘It takes a village to raise a child’…..can we be part of the ‘village’ for these teenagers who really need our support? It’s only £25 per month to sponsor a young person. You can sponsor as an individual, share the cost with a friend or sponsor a young person through your club or business. Get in touch to make a difference and give a student a brighter future contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Enjoy the photos and videos and I look forward to receiving your email if you’d like to give the gift of education to one of these students. Thank you, Sarah x

Students thanking the charity Sal’s Shoes for their new shoes
The S1 students are thanking All Saints School, Maidenhead, for their new school bags
Uniform Donation – All Saints Junior School, Maidenhead
Please help sponsor my education at Bright Futures Secondary School

Sadie Harmin’s Staffroom

Bright Futures Secondary School has another completed building. Thank you to Vets with Horsepower for their financial assistance..

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Sarah’s blog 24/09/25

Bright Futures Secondary School has another completed building. This year, as there are four years of students (and classroom four had been used as a staffroom) four new teachers have been employed in addition to the existing staff. A purpose built staffroom has just been completed and the name transferred to the new building. I think you will agree that the staffroom looks very smart.

Sadie Harmin is a little girl in America with a big smile whose grandmother & mother have been very supportive of our charity and of the projects we are helping. I have just sent Sadie’s grandmother a photo of the new staffroom and she is delighted with how it looks and with Sadie’s name written on the side.

The next building that we hope will be completed very soon, as the builders are working hard, is a two classroom block; one will be Bright Futures Nursery, and one will be an extra classroom for when extra room is needed/year group being split into two different lessons.

We are very grateful for the financial support we received last year from the charity Vets with Horsepower which made the building of this staffroom possible.

Hope you enjoy looking at these photos. There will be more from Bright Futures Secondary School in the next few days with new students looking for sponsors and school uniform and shoes being distributed. If you would like to support the education of a young person living in extreme poverty then please do get in touch. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com . Thanks, Sarah x

Please help sponsor my education at Bright Futures Secondary School

International Literacy Day

It’s International Literacy Day today! We are celebrating all the amazing children and young people we are helping to support through literacy in rural northern Malawi.

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Sarah’s blog 8/9/25

“Literacy is a bridge from misery to hope.” Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General

“The only thing that you absolutely have to know, is the location of the library.” Albert Einstein

“Reading is the gateway for children that makes all other learning possible.” Barack Obama

On International Literacy Day, we want to share some of the ways we, with the help of our supporters, are making a difference to literacy levels in rural northern Malawi.

1.School Literacy Project. How can children learn to read properly if they don’t have books to practice? So far, we have gifted 20 boxes of books to Chambo Primary School and Kalanga Primary School, both of which are in Chitipa District in the far north of Malawi. Most schools do not have enough resources, children do not have the notebooks and pencils that they need. Occasionally, we can provide a notebook and pencil for the oldest children at these primary schools, thanks to money raised from our supporters. Despite having so much stacked against them, since preloved books have been donated to these schools, the p8 exam pass rate has gone up almost 20% to 78% which is amazing! We hope to keep going with this project as it is proving to be such a success. This is a low cost project with a huge impact. The preloved books are donated, but what we do have to pay for is £17.50 per box of books on the container ship to Malawi. We need your help to support this project so that we can include other schools in our School Literacy Project. You can make a donation via the website, or our QR code or email me for bank details contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com

2. Emma’s Rainbow Library was built in memory of Emma Buchanan who lived in Balfron (where we are based). Emma loved being read to whilst she was ill and her family helped raise funds towards this library. There are story books for all ages, reference books, school books and a couple of computers in the library which is a fantastic resource for all the children and young people in the surrounding area. Children are learning to love books and spend quiet time reading for pleasure here. Yesterday, I attended an event by the first ever Balfron Book Festival. I had a stall where people could donate their preloved books and I was able to tell lots of people about the impact their donations are having on literacy levels.

3. Bright Futures Nursery Care Packages. The nursery was opened as pre-schoolers were hanging about with nowhere to go. They are fed at each session. Each child that starts nursery receives a bag containing; two red t-shirts, three pairs of underwear, soap, toothpaste & toothbrush, a blanket, a soft toy and two picture story books. We want every home to have at least two books that the family can share together. When the nursery children first saw the books that we were sending, they didn’t know what to do with them and didn’t know how to turn the pages on a book. Now they look forward to a story! The school teachers at Chambo Primary have said that there is a noticeable difference in the children’s literacy when they start school to those who have not attended nursery. We need your support for this important project to continue please. It costs £10 per child to receive a care package to support their wellbeing and their literacy. We would love your help.

4. Bright Futures Secondary School. There weren’t enough places for some of the young people we help to support in the nearest secondary schools and secondary schools aren’t free in Malawi. So, again thanks to our supporters, we raised funds to build a small secondary school. All the students are living in extreme poverty, most are orphans, and we match them sponsors to help support their education. Everything is free to these students; education, school uniform, stationery and they receive a free school lunch each day which, for many of them, is the only food they have to eat. The whole S2 class all passed their national Junior Certificate of Education exams which was a great achievement! The more sponsors we have, the more students can attend Bright Futures Secondary School. We ask for £25 per month per student. You can sponsor as an individual, friends, or family splitting the monthly cost. We even have a few businesses sponsoring young people. If you would like to help a young person have a brighter future please do get in touch contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com

As you can see there is a great deal happening to support literacy in the community we are helping to support in rural northern Malawi. But there is still a lot more to do. We need financial support to keep the above projects going so that young people have choices, chances and opportunities that they wouldn’t previously have had. They are desperate for education and want to learn. Will you help please?

We are hoping to collect and send board books to distribute to the new mum’s at Chambo Health Centre as part of our Mother & Baby project so that babies can have access to books with their parents and looking at picture books will become an everyday activity before they even get to nursery and school.

Also there are plans for adult literacy classes which we hope will be able to start soon as a trial. There are so many adults who have missed out on education because they have had to work from an early age to help provide food for their family. Let’s see if we can continue, with your help, Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thank you so much for your support, Sarah x

Our QR code where you can make a donation to support our School Literacy Project or one of the other projects. Thank you!
The S2 students at Bright Futures Secondary School all received new uniform and stationery before sitting their national exams. We are so proud as all of them passed! If you would like to sponsor a young person’s education then please do get in touch. The more sponsors we have then the more students can go to school!
Children in one of the classrooms at Kalanga Primary School looking at some of the books that they have been gifted as part of our School Literacy Project
some of the nursery children, outside the library, showing off the bars of soap they have received
nursery children with their care packages
Boxes of books gifted to Chambo Primary School
learning about digital literacy in Emma’s Rainbow Library
Bible Knowledge is a core subject at schools in Malawi. We received a donation of preloved bibles from a church in Edinburgh and were able to send these to students at Bright Futures Secondary School. The majority of lessons are in English with Chichewa also being a core subject in schools.
One of the children from Bright Futures Nursery with his care package
Please support literacy in rural northern Malawi. Thank you!
Great Exam Results from Chambo Primary School!
100% pass rate at BFSS for S2 students in the 2025 exams!
Two little films

Great Exam Results from Chambo Primary School!

Great results! THE SCHOOL LITERACY PROJECT IS WORKING AND MAKING A POSITIVE IMPACT ON LITERACY LEVELS OF CHILDREN LIVING IN EXTREME POVERTY in rural northern Malawi!

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Sarah’s blog 22/8/25

There have, once again, been some great exam results from Chambo Primary School!

In 2019, 59% of p8 students passed their primary school leavers exams. In 2020 and 2021 the figure was 60% for each of these years. In 2022 the figure rose to 63% pass rate. In 2023, 69% of students passed their exams and in 2024 that figure had risen to 78% of students passing their primary school leavers exams.

This year the pass rate was again 78% but three students got such good grades in their exams, they have been offered places at one of the big government secondary schools. This is an amazing achievement for Chambo Primary School as other, bigger primary schools have not had any students selected.

Education officials, teachers, students and the community are all noticing that the help that Chambo Primary School has had, thanks to our supporters, is making a big difference. THE SCHOOL LITERACY PROJECT IS WORKING AND MAKING A POSITIVE IMPACT ON LITERACY LEVELS OF CHILDREN LIVING IN EXTREME POVERTY!

Also, these students have had notebooks (not enough for all year), girls have a toilet block, upper classes now have desks and benches, there is clean water for drinking and handwashing and also an orchard has been planted.

The children and their teachers no longer feel forgotten. They have hope of a brighter future! Thank you so much to all who have helped and supported with these projects. We are making good progress, with tangible results, and we couldn’t do this without you.

Unfortunately, we still cannot get any big charities to feed the primary school children in the rural far north…none of the primary schools in that area have a porridge programme as no big charities are working that far north. So there is still the issue of malnutrition to address which we need help with.

But for today, we can celebrate what we all have achieved, and we are including all our supporters in part of our team as you play a vital role in helping the children and young people. Well done everyone!! We are so pleased that small changes are having a big impact and giving young people opportunities, choices and chances that they wouldn’t previously have had. Also, thank you to Levison and his team for their tireless work for the children.

The school literacy project is a relatively low cost project as the preloved books are donated. We just need to buy the strong boxes and pay for the cost of shipping them on the container which is £17.50 per box, and fuel in Malawi when Levison and team collect the boxes from the container. Please help us keep sending more boxes of books by scanning the QR code and making a donation towards the cost of sending boxes. Or you can make a donation via the website or contact me for bank details. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com

Please do have a read at the attached two links and have a look at the photos as a reminder of how, together, we are Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thanks, Sarah x

School Literacy Project – Chambo Primary School
Facts & Figures from Chambo Primary School

Building work during the holidays at Bright Futures Secondary School

There is lots of building work going on at Bright Futures Secondary School now that the students and teachers are on holiday. The plan is that everything is ready for the new term starting in a month’s time. These photos and video were from last week.

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Sarah’s blog 20/8/25

There is lots of building work going on at Bright Futures Secondary School now that the students and teachers are on holiday. The plan is that everything is ready for the new term starting in a month’s time. These photos and video were from last week.

As there will be four year groups next term, more teaching staff have had to be employed to cover the extra classes. A new staffroom block is almost finished which will provide the teachers with plenty of room and will be equipped with solar power. This is the building you can see in the photos.

Work has started on the foundations of a new classroom block which will provide an extra classroom as well as a purpose built nursery class which will be far better for the preschool children and will mean that the resources don’t have to always be packed away at the end of each session.

More bricks have been made and were fired at the weekend, so next week they will be ready to start building with. There are also two small semi-detached houses being built and an extension to the chicken coop and to the pig pen.

All of this progress is thanks to the support we have received from grants and donations. We are very grateful that money was in place so that this building work can happen while the students are on holiday from Bright Futures Secondary School.

We look forward to bringing more photos and videos soon and to seeing the finished buildings! Many thanks for your support, Sarah x

100% pass rate at BFSS for S2 students in the 2025 exams!

Well done students at BFSS for 100% pass rate in JCE exams. We are so proud of each of you for passing your S2 exams!

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Sarah’s blog 18/8/25

Some amazing news to share with you today. We have just heard that all of the S2 students at Bright Futures Secondary School have passed their national JCE exams. We are so proud of how hard they have worked and delighted for each of them.

Each of these students lives in extreme poverty. Most rely on their free school lunch as their only meal each day as there is not enough food at home. Many of them are orphans and live with extended family. All of them have the odds stacked against them achieving their goals.

In Malawi, secondary education needs to be paid for. None of these students would be in school if it wasn’t for the fact that they have each been matched with a sponsor who helps to support the costs of their education at Bright Futures Secondary School, which was built especially for these students who couldn’t afford to pay to go to one of the government secondary schools. Sponsorship is only £25 per month per student and you can sponsor a student as an individual, a group of friends or family or even through your business. We are looking for more sponsors for the new S1 students. If you would like to help then email contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com

At Bright Futures Secondary School, class sizes are much smaller than at other schools. Students receive all of the following for free: education, uniform, school bag, stationery, torch, toiletries and of course their lunch at school each day. The school uses a holistic approach as theses students need nurturing as well as educating. And look at the results…100% pass rate for the S2 students in their exams. You have all done brilliantly, against the odds, and worked so hard.

We would like to thank the teachers at Bright Futures Secondary School for their hard work and dedication to their students. Great team work everyone, and to Levison for leading the team, well done, another successful school year completed. Also to each of the sponsors, thank you for giving these young people a chance to succeed and shine. They wouldn’t have had the opportunity to study for and sit these exams without your support. Thank you so much, Sarah x

S2 students received new uniform and stationery before sitting their national exams. Well done all of you for passing your JCE (Junior Certificate of Education). We are so proud of your achievements.
Thank you to the sponsors for supporting these vulnerable students at BFSS. Thanks to you, and of course their teachers, they have all passed their S2 exams. They should each be very proud of themselves for all their hard work and dedication.

Why vulnerable teenagers need sponsors

Whilst there is still so much to do to improve the lives of the most vulnerable, here are some of the reasons how being a sponsor can and does make a difference.

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Sarah’s blog 18/7/25

Levison sent me a graph today with information about teenage pregnancies in Malawi. I knew the rates were high but I am shocked by just how high. Chitipa District, in the far north, has one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancies in Malawi. Over half of teenage girls age 15-19 become pregnant. The actual figure is 543/1000. Since Bright Futures Secondary School opened in 2022 there have been only 2 teenage pregnancies.

As well as helping to vastly reduce teenage pregnancies, here are some of the ways that having a sponsor is helping to give vulnerable teenagers, living in extreme poverty, hope for a brighter future:

  1. Secondary School has to be paid for in Malawi. None of the students who attend Bright Futures Secondary School could afford to go to secondary school without having being matched with a sponsor to help pay for their education. There are so many more young people wanting this opportunity.
  2. Being matched with a sponsor means that, as well as their education being free, each student at BFSS, receives a substantial and nutritious school lunch each day. This, for most, is their only meal of the day, and means their families don’t have to worry about feeding them with the family’s very limited food supplies.
  3. Having a nutritious lunch each day is helping students to stay healthy and help them concentrate on their lessons.
  4. Being matched with a sponsor means free school uniform, stationery, shoes and a torch for studying at home.
  5. Being matched with a sponsor means that there is hope for a brighter future through education, instead of doing piece work in the fields for a pittance.
  6. Being matched with a sponsor means that students are kept busy at school and after school activities and less likely to get into trouble.
  7. Being matched with a sponsor means that young people have access to counselling as all have lost family members and lived through trauma. Bright Futures Secondary School takes a holistic approach to caring for the students both in and outside the classroom.
  8. Being matched with a sponsor means that girls are far less likely to be married off too young. Some families are so desperate they consider giving their daughter to an older man in exchange for a dowry to feed the rest of the family. Levison has managed to prevent girls as young as 11 being married off.
  9. Being matched with a sponsor is helping ensure young people are more literate, numerate and have skills for their futures.
  10. Being matched with a sponsor is giving vulnerable young people, living in extreme poverty, choices and chances that they wouldn’t otherwise have had.

We need more sponsors to ensure that more students can have these opportunities and have hope for a brighter future for themselves and their families. Will you help us help them please? It is only £25 per month to sponsor a young person. You can sponsor as an individual, a business or a group of friends or family. It might be the most important thing anyone ever does for that teenager. Will you make a difference to one young person and change their life? contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com .

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our sponsors and supporters for helping to make a difference to each of the students. Also, for the teachers at Bright Futures Secondary School, to Levison and the rest of the team …. a huge thank you. When we see statistics like this it is very clear that, although there is much to do, we are Changing Lives (in) Malawi. Thank you, Sarah x

S2 students received new uniform and stationery when they sat their exams recently
planting banana tubers in practical agricultural lessons
Students prepared the ground and planted sweet potato vines as part of their practical agricultural lessons. This crop helped feed them and their fellow students.
BFSS – S2 JCE Exams
Independence Day in Malawi

our new QR code to make a donation

Science at Bright Futures Secondary School

Great photos and videos of practical science classes last week at Bright Futures Secondary School

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Sarah’s blog 12/5/25

Science lessons at Bright Futures are a lot more interesting since more resources have been purchased. Students have said that they never realised science was so much fun!

Mr Kanyimbo, Deputy Head at BFSS, (white shirt) sent these great photos and videos of himself and Mr Kalambo (blue shirt) teaching last week. They are a great way to see what happens during classes at Bright Futures Secondary School. Thank you to Mr Kanyimbo for sending the photos and videos. Thanks also to everyone who contributed to our fundraiser to buy practical science equipment. There are more resources on the way on the container which will be there for the new term starting in September.

Also, thank you to everyone who is supporting the education of these students. They wouldn’t be having the opportunities for learning or having a free school lunch every day without your kindness. We are looking for more sponsors for the students who will be looking for places at BFSS in September. It’s still only £25 per month. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com

We are raising funds to buy soap for students to take home to their families to help protect everyone from the outbreak of MPox. If you can help us with buying soap the link is here https://donorsee.com/project/27307?share=1 or you can email me at contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com .

Visit to Kalanga Primary School – Books & Sports Tops

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Sarah’s blog 5/4/25

Last week Levison visited Kalanga Primary School. Chambo Primary School is the nearest primary school to Bright Futures Campus and where most of the orphans we help to support attend. A few of the orphans who are supported through the feeding programme and with new clothes attend Kalanga Primary School which is further away.

As we collected so many boxes of preloved books as part of our School Literacy Project, we split the boxes between Chambo Primary and Kalanga Primary. As you will be able to see from these photos, most children are sitting on the floor at Kalanga Primary with no resources. There is no clean running water and there are no latrines. All of these students are suffering from hunger and malnutrition as they are living in extreme poverty and, although we have tried to involve big charities, there are no porridge programmes in schools in this area.

Strathblane Primary School and Balfron Primary School were renewing all their group reading scheme books so kindly donated a huge amount of books that we were able to share between Chambo Primary School and Kalanga Primary School. Lots of individuals as well as some other organisations like nurseries and an after school club also donated lots of lovely preloved books.

Levison also took sports tops that had been very kindly donated. Unfortunately, I have forgotten who donated the blue ones and there isn’t a badge on the front (if you donated these – thank you. Let me know and I will amend this text to thank the club) but the black/yellow ones were gifted by www.shoesharemalawi.org from a 10K race – thank you so much.

Here is the link to read about the visit to Chambo Primary School and to see the great pictures https://changinglivesmalawi.com/2025/03/17/school-literacy-project-chambo-primary-school/

Already, the Education Department are noticing the value of our School Literacy Project as, year on year, p8 leavers exam results at Chambo Primary School (where there have been several donations of books) are improving.

This is a low cost project with a huge impact and we are very proud to be making a difference to so many children’s education in this way. Thank you to everyone who has supported us with this ongoing project. As all the books are preloved and donated, our costs are buying strong boxes to pack and send the boxes in and £17.50 per box to cover costs on the container. There are also costs in Malawi with collecting boxes from Ekwendeni when the container arrives. However, for the amount of chidren who will benefit from this project, this is a big project with small costs.

If you would like to help to pay for a box to ensure The School Literacy Project can continue then please do email me contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Thank you again to everyone for supporting children in rural northern Malawi, Sarah x

School Literacy Project – Chambo Primary School

We are delighted to see these photos and videos from Chambo Primary School. They have received more books as part of the School Literacy Project.

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Sarah’s blog 17/3/25

How can children learn to read without books to practice? Thanks to the help of many of our supporters, Chambo Primary School has once again received a huge donation of preloved books as part of our School Literacy Project. Thanks to so many people who have donated books and to Strathblane Primary School and Balfron Primary School who donated all of their group reading books which they were updating. There are a few other organisations local to us who also made donations. We are grateful to everyone and to those who helped us towards the cost of sending some of these boxes. Kalanga Primary School will also receive a donation of boxes of books in the near future.

As always, thanks goes to the volunteers at Bananabox Trust in Dundee who document the contents of boxes, order the container and then pack all the boxes into the container. We always say everything is teamwork and we are very grateful to all the people who help us support the children and young people who live in extreme poverty in rural northern Malawi.

Most of the orphans and other vulnerable children we help to support attend Chambo Primary School. There are eight classes in the school with approximately 600 students in total. During the rainy season, not all students are able to get to school as it is not safe for them to cross the swollen rivers.

As you can see from the photos and videos, this school is very basic. They don’t have notebooks and pencils, teachers don’t have enough chalk. There are no porridge programmes in the rural far north so all these learners are hungry and many are suffering from Malnutrition.

Thanks to the help of our supporters and grants that we have successfully applied for, so far we have helped the students at Chambo Primary in the following ways;

  1. They only had one classroom with desks and benches; a grant paid for desks & benches in two more classrooms.
  2. There was no clean water supply for drinking and washing hands. Thanks to a grant we applied for, they now have taps and a supply of clean water.
  3. Students relieved themselves in the bushes, making girls especially very vulnerable. We received a grant to build a girls’ latrine block.
  4. Girls who need reusable sanitary towels are provided with them so that they no longer have to miss one week of school each month.
  5. Exercise books and pens and chalk have previously been donated; however they need more urgently. https://donorsee.com/project/25617?share=1
  6. Many of these children attend the weekly feeding programme. It is nowhere near enough, as most don’t eat every day, but all we can afford as we try to work with the community to set up sustainable projects.
  7. Many of these children have received preloved clothes that we have sent.
  8. The students at Chambo Primary are benefitting from The School Literacy Project where we collect and send preloved books to support education. Primary 8 leavers exam results have been improving year on year since we have been supporting them.
  9. Chambo Primary has received sports kit and students have taken part in sporting events that we have supported.
  10. Chambo Primary has received fruit tree saplings, banana tubers and pine tree saplings as part of a sustainable project.
  11. We have supported a School Holiday Study School for the past few years to give p8 students revision time prior to their exams. They receive a substantial school lunch each day so that it helps them concentrate and is a great incentive for them to attend lessons during their holidays.

If you can help with purchasing new exercise books and pens/pencils for these students we would be extremely grateful. They need these to take notes ahead of their exams. https://donorsee.com/project/25617?share=1

Thank you again for all the support (and a huge amount of work went on behind the scenes too). Enjoy these photos and videos, Sarah x

Some of the staff at Chambo Primary School
You may be able to spot a few Strathblane Primary School sweatshirts
Facts & Figures from Chambo Primary School

International Women’s Day 2025 #IWD2025

#IWD2025 We are highlighting the story of one young woman whom we help to support. We want all women to have equality & empowerment and the choices and chances they deserve.

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Sarah’s blog 8/3/25

HAPPY INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY #IWD2025
The themes for 2025 are – Accelerate Action for ALL women and girls: Rights, Equality & Empowerment.

For International Women’s Day, I’m going to share with you part of the story of one of the young women who has been supported for the last few years. Her life is hard and she is living in extreme poverty. There are lots of issues in this story, so it is very apt for International Women’s Day.

Maria had missed out on a lot of education due to her family circumstances. Being so poor, she had to work for a pittance to help buy food. Maria came to Levison and said that she wanted to be able to attend secondary school. Levison could see what a hard worker she was and so gave her some extra coaching so that she could pass her primary school leavers exams…which she did and was delighted.

We found a sponsor for Maria so she could attend secondary school free of charge and she progressed well, passing her national school exams at the end of s2 (final exams are at the end of s4).

Maria lives with her aunt and her younger sister and has a two hour walk to get to school. That in itself is a huge burden and exhausting and shows real commitment to getting an education.

However, Maria became pregnant. We do not know the full story. Maria will not talk about it, nor did she actually realise she was pregnant until one of the women who helps with the cooking noticed. Maria was supported to attend the health centre regularly and, because she was having a nutritious school lunch each day, she was in fairly good health whilst pregnant.

Maria had a very difficult birth. Her aunt stayed with her at the hospital. Patients have to have someone with them to help care for them and have to provide their own food. Conditions are very basic. So Maria and her aunt were supported with food during this time.

Thankfully, Maria gave birth to a healthy baby boy – Wakisa. Maria asked to return to school for the new term and her aunt agreed to look after Wakisa during the school day.

This has been really hard for Maria but she is dedicated to her son and has been trying to navigate being a new mum, a full-time student and living a distance from school in extreme poverty.

Her son, Wakisa, has been poorly on and off for a few months so Maria has either been at the local health centre with him, at home with him or sitting in class worrying about him. How could she think about her lessons when she was thinking about Wakisa and also worrying about how to make life better for her and her son and provide for him?

Maria has now made the decision to drop out of school as she was getting more and more behind with her work and she obviously wanted and needed to be with her son. As she has a good work ethic, Maria has been trying to find piece work in farmers’ fields to earn a pittance.

I cannot imagine how hard life is for Maria and so many young women like them. But they don’t give up. They keep trying to do the best for their family. They have no choice.

Maria is still sponsored at the moment even though she has dropped out of Bright Futures Secondary School. So that means she will get a monthly food parcel to help supplement any other food coming into their home. However, we need to give her a hand up not a hand out so she cannot be sponsored forever.

Little Wakisa has also just been sponsored, so he will also have a food parcel each month. So those are two good practical things that are happening for Maria and Wakisa, thanks to their sponsors.

Because we know Maria is such a hard worker we do want to support her to get back on her feet and feel like life isn’t so hopeless. If you would like to help Maria then please do email contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com

Let’s make a difference to young women like Maria so that they can bring up their families to have a better and brighter future with choices, chances and opportunities.

The village chiefs, during a recent conversation with Levison, said that by keeping girls in education it has lowered the teenage pregnancy rate greatly. Obviously, pregnancies will still happen and also because of long distances walked in very rural locations, girls and women are still very much at risk.

I am glad that things are improving for girls and women but there is a great deal more to do. I always say it is about teamwork, so if you’d like to be part of Maria’s team and make a difference on International Women’s Day #IWD2025 then let us know. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Thank you again to all our sponsors and everyone who supports our work. Thank you, Sarah x

Maria (top right) during a science lesson at Bright Futures Secondary School
Maria recently working in a farmer’s field for a pittance whilst carrying her son on her back
Maria and Wakisa after receiving new clothes for him, a blanket, a food parcel and soap
“My name is Maria Chizumira. I was schooling at Bright Futures Secondary but I have dropped out of school because I need more time to get food, soap and other resources for my child. It was my wish to continue with my education but circumstances have made me not to.”

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