Our Mission
- To provide meaningful educational opportunities and pathways for refugee and disadvantaged children
- To nurture and develop the characters of our children
- To develop the skills and professional effectiveness of our staff.
- To provide an outlook program connecting our children to those around the world.
- To offer an education to every deprived child in the area, irrespective of background.
- To provide a stable and loving environment for our children.
What makes us unique among refugee schools
- We have access to psychological support services to assist the children where needed
- We promote a strong sense of community, moral values and duty towards others
- We recruit teachers from Lebanese, Palestinian and Syrian communities
- We have a dedicated health support worker who secures additional services where needed
- We offer 'all through' provision from KG all the way to Grade 12, and the children have access to the Lebanese national exams, which opens pathways to university and further training
- We have a programme of continuing professional development and support of our staff
The Obstacles:
* Lebanon: Inter-Agency - 2019 LCRP Facts & Figures - February 2019 available from https://data2.unhcr.org/en/documents/details/68104
- There are around 500,000 Syrian children in Lebanon of whom only around 50% are engaged in education.*
- The Lebanese government does not usually permit students of Syrian refugee schools to sit Lebanese government school exams, which makes it difficult for them to then integrate into the Lebanese education system.
- Schools need to work under the auspices of foreign NGOs since Lebanese policy obstructs the foundation of Syrian NGOs on its territory.
- Due to a lack of funding, our schools must ask refugee parents to contribute to the school.
- Our schools are only able to run for as long as funding is available. Their continued functioning is therefore dependent on the continued goodwill of donors.
- Harassment of female students on their journeys back from school discourages attendance; this is exacerbated through inadequate funding for school transport to be provided.
- Socioeconomic problems and a lack of future employment opportunities result in a high drop-out rate from the age of ten onwards.
- It is difficult for refugees to fulfill the requirements for obtaining residency papers.
* Lebanon: Inter-Agency - 2019 LCRP Facts & Figures - February 2019 available from https://data2.unhcr.org/en/documents/details/68104
Why we set up in Lebanon
- An estimated 2 million Syrians fled their homes and came to Lebanon to escape the conflict in their homeland, Lebanon should a safe place for refugee children to complete their education, far away from ongoing devastating impact of the war.
- There is a pressing need for education of Syrian children outside Syria, especially in countries such as Lebanon, which have taken in large numbers of refugees.
