Team Gambia is a volunteering project at the Jemus Jungkung Jammeh Memorial Nursery School in Abuko, near Banjul.

In December 2013, The Solihull Sixth Form College travelled to The Gambia with Hamstead Hall School. The college took 10 students and Hamstead Hall took 12 students. In late 2014, the College repeated the trip, this time independently, as a group of 24 students headed out to volunteer in the school, teaching the children and improving the classrooms. This was followed by the 2015 trip with 20 students from the College and the 2016 trip, which took 30 students out to visit the school.

This year the college it taking 19 more students, and I am one of them. I will be SHAVING MY HAIR for sponsorship on the 1st November, which will go directly to the Nursery School.

Every student embarking on this trip is set a challenge to raise £400 each. With it costing just £375 to pay a teacher there for one year, this fundraising target will do real good for the school in The Gambia. There is currently a large waiting list of children who want to attend the school, but they do not have room for them, despite class sizes of 50-60 children in a class. The money we raise will help fund the construction of two new classrooms to fill that demand. Staff and students will work together over the 9-10 months leading up to the trip itself to raise as much money as we can for the school. The 2016 Team raised £16,000!

http://www.solihullsfc.ac.uk/courses/team-gambia/