Bringing vulnerable children back into education and away from child labour, child marriage and a life on the streets.
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We would like to thank all the volunteers at Priston Saturday Cafe, Bath, who have raised £1,000 in support of St Matthias Community School in Zambia. St Matthias is located in Ng'ombe, one of the poorest and most densely populated areas in Lusaka. Here there are a large number of low-income families unable to support their children. There are now over 400 children from nursery to Grade 7 at the school, with six volunteer teachers. Psychosocial counselling is also provided for the children at the school. This great donation will go a long way to help these children.
With the first block of 4 classrooms, 2 administration offices and 4 teacher's studies now finished, we are in the process of constructing a new ablution block. Once this is completed, the education authorities will allow the school to open. With the rains having started, transport in this remote region of Zambia is badly hampered by impassable roads. This doens't stop the local villagers moving bricks from where they are made and fired to the construction site – all carried on the back of bicycles!
Ben and Alex, who volunteered up in Chama during their gap years, continue to provide massive support for The Chama Project. Their family have donated a a further £6,000 to the Project, which has ensured great progress towards opening the first secondary school for girls in this remote District of north eastern Zambia. We thank them enormously for their continued support.
In 2014 a group of 14 pupils from St Mary's School Calne girls came out to make a start on construction. By the time they left at the end of their trip, they had completed the ablution block and almost completed the first 24-bed dormitory, which is currently being used as a store. These girls gave up their half-term holiday in the UK to come out to Zambia and work in 45º October heat– not only did they work hard and achieve a lot, but they returned home with the benefit of having learned a huge amount about a very different culture and way of live to their own back in the UK.
A second contribution in 2014 came from the Diocese of Edinburgh, which raised £10,000 through their Bishop's 2013 Lent Appeal. This paid for a borehole to supply fresh water for the very first time to Tembwe and replaced the small, deep and very muddy well, which had been the only source of water in the district and for the new school. Remaining funding went towards a building equipment and materials, ensuring a strong start to the construction phase I.
The Grassmarket Community Project volunteers and friends, led by Tommy Steel held a sleepout outside their community centre in the heart of Edinburgh's Old Town to raise funds for their trip to Chama. It was a cold, wet winter's night following the Scotland vs Wales Rugby International. They raised a lot of money, with one young man donating a massive £7,500.
The Livingstone Initiative held a black tie fundraising evening in Edinburgh at Greyfriars Kirk in February 2018. It was a glorious and huge fun event, kicking off with a Champagne Reception, followed by Dinner and Scottish Dancing. An auction and raffle took place after dinner, with a great selection of wonderful prizes donated by Zambian and British partners and sponsors. Over £4000 profit was raised and handed over to The Anglican Children's Programme's Chama Project. Their next Fundraiser will be held on 20 February 2021. For more information, please email
Catherine Scott, a British doctor with family connections to Zambia, spent a day at Edinburgh's Meadows Festival selling bric-a-brac from her stall. She had had a good clear out of the family home and decided this was a great way to raise funds for charity. She generously split her takings between The Chama Project and one other charity. She is currently planning a trip to Zambia with her brothers and sister.
Ben and Alex Eaglestone visited Zambia in August 2019 to stay with Father Katete, ACP's Director, in Lusaka. They had an amazing time in both in Lusaka and Chama. These young men raised funds through JustGiving and by organising a charity football match in Gloucestershire. Both are now working with us on the marketing and social media side. Click here to find out more about volunteering.
Emma White, Head of Sixth Form at Farmor’s School, Gloucestershire, has been contributing to the ACP for over ten years. Her daughter Katie volunteered in Livingstone and since then Katie has been supporting the project and encouraging some of her pupils to visit Zambia and help Father Katete in their gap year. She is hoping to visit Chama herself soon.
Bishop William Mchombo (Chipata), Bishop David Njovu (Lusaka) with Father Katete, Director of the Anglican Children's Programme, are all working together to build a better future for the children of Chama District, north-eastern Zambia.
The villagers surrounding Tembwe are working hard making all the bricks needed for the new school in Chama. The bricks are made from clay and are being fired on site. Hundreds of thousands of bricks are being stock-piled ready for the bricklayers to use. Currently these bricks are destined for the classroom block.
'Street kids' deserve a chance...
We want them to be able to smile again!