Somali After School Club
by Rob Smith

Hearing of the success this initiative has had in the advancing of Somali school children within mainstream education; I made a surprise visit to the project.

At 6.00pm the classroom was full and the elderly gentleman who’d been a teacher in Somalia began that evening’s lesson. The IT Community School and Subject Support was set up in January last year by local Somali parents, former schoolteachers and writers with good experience within the British education system.

“This is having a great effect on both secondary and junior school Somali pupils’ educational achievements, and attainment across the city,” voiced an education department insider.

There are still many youngsters at risk of exclusion, and having English as a second language prevents many from moving forward as quickly as others. Giving these Somali children an opportunity to understand and learn the curriculum in their own language, while helping with their English, gives them a second chance to achieve success in mainstream education.

Originally set up to help Somali speaking children and parents, the project now also supports those from European countries that are now settled here.

Contact: Mohamed Issa on 0778 659 3666.