A Fantastic Collaboration! An Amazing Partnership That’s Changing Lives
🌍 A Partnership That’s Changing Lives
Celebrating Albert Pritchard Infant & Wood Green Junior Federated Schools and Matthew Wilmot
This post is all about the incredible support from Albert Pritchard Infant and Wood Green Junior Federated Schools (APWG) – and their inspiring Teacher and Curriculum Leader Matthew Wilmot – whose kindness and dedication have helped make life-changing projects possible for the children at BFiG Busumbala Nursery School in The Gambia. What an amazing partnership!
🌟 How It All Began
In Summer 2024, Matthew reached out with a wonderful idea: could his federated schools partner with Building Futures in The Gambia and fundraise in support of our nursery school?
The collaboration would not only help our children in The Gambia – it would also contribute towards an important award that APWG were working towards, linking global citizenship, kindness and community action. A perfect partnership was born!
🎤 Assemblies, Awareness & Super Kindness
In Autumn 2024, charity trustee Mark Chidler and I visited Matthew’s schools and delivered three (yes, THREE!) assemblies in one afternoon to introduce the children to life at BFiG Busumbala Nursery School and explain how they could help make a difference.
Over the following academic year, I returned several times—joining assemblies and special events including their brilliant Super Kindness Day. The learning I witnessed was truly moving: children exploring what it means to be “Super Kind” to everyone and everything on our planet, including children thousands of miles away in The Gambia.
👉 You can read more about this amazing day here:
“An Amazing Afternoon at APWG” on our website at An Amazing Afternoon at Albert Pritchard Infant and Wood Green Junior Federated Schools! | Building Futures in the Gambia
🌐 A Live Link from The Gambia
In January 2025, something magical happened.
I livestreamed directly from BFiG Busumbala Nursery School all the way back to the pupils at Wood Green Junior School! The children enjoyed a virtual tour of the school, asked wonderful questions, and even got to meet our School Manager, Lamin Barrow – in real time!
A genuine moment of global connection and curiosity. Truly unforgettable.
💰 An EPIC Fundraising Total!
Throughout the year, the entire APWG community – children, staff and families – fundraised nonstop for BFiG.
And now… drumroll please…
🥁 £1,154.60! 🥁
£1,154.60 raised!
An absolutely epic achievement – and what perfect timing it turned out to be.
🧱 From Kindness to Concrete: The School Wall & Gates
Right now, BFiG Busumbala Nursery School is going through its official registration process with the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education in The Gambia.
One key requirement?
👉 A secure wall around the school site for safeguarding the children.
This is essential for keeping our pupils safe and ensuring we meet government regulations.
And thanks directly to the phenomenal fundraising efforts of APWG…
✅ We now HAVE that wall
✅ AND brand-new shiny metal gates
✅ Installed just days ago!
Mission accomplished!
🍎 Supporting Our Teachers
APWG’s impact doesn’t stop at bricks and gates.
Their fundraising has also helped keep our school running by contributing towards staff wages – including the salary of our wonderful teacher:
💗 Mariama Fatty
The reason Mariama can stand in front of her classroom every day is because children in the UK chose to help children in The Gambia.
That connection is real – and incredibly powerful.
🤝 With Heartfelt Thanks
We’d also like to recognise the generosity of:
- The Drums Aloud family (2024)
- The guests at the wedding of Steph Edwards & Mark Chidler
Without your contributions, the school wall would not yet be complete. Your kindness made the final piece of the puzzle possible.
📸 Photos & A Special Thank You Video
Attached to this post you’ll find:
- Photos of the newly completed school wall
- The beautiful new gates (the small gap you see will be filled this week!)
- Photos reflecting our year-long partnership with APWG
- And a brilliant thank-you video from Lamin Barrow
Lamin worried he might not have said the full name of the schools quite perfectly…
I reassured him: the children at APWG are a lovely bunch – they’ll forgive anything when it comes from the heart!
💖 THANK YOU, APWG!
On behalf of every child at BFiG Busumbala Nursery School, we want to say:
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
To the pupils, teachers, families and community of Albert Pritchard Infant and Wood Green Junior Federated Schools – you are making a real, visible, lasting difference in the lives of young children in The Gambia.
You truly are Global Citizens in action.
🏦 Want to Keep Supporting BFiG?
If anyone within the APWG community or beyond would like to support the ongoing running costs of the school – donations are always gratefully received:
Charity Bank Details
Building Futures in The Gambia
Sort Code: 77-33-04
Account Number: 34015368
Bank: Lloyds
Online Donations
💻 PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/bfigcharity
☕ Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/bfigcharity
🔁 Become a Monthly Supporter
If you’re able to set up a small monthly standing order, it would be hugely helpful.
We now have:
- Two teachers on staff
- A third teacher coming soon
Regular donations help us provide stable wages and secure education for our pupils.
🎁 Gift Aid = EVEN MORE KINDNESS!
If you’re a UK taxpayer, your donation can go 25% further at no extra cost to you.
💡 £10 becomes £12.50 for BFiG!
All we need is your name, address and postcode to apply Gift Aid to your donation.
🔗 Stay Connected
🌐 Website: https://www.bfigcharity.org/
📘 Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/gambiaschoolsproject
📘 Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/bfigcharity
🌍 All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/buildingfuturesinthegambia
🌱 What’s Next for BFiG?
Our next big steps:
🌳 Planting trees around the school
🚽 Building a brand-new toilet block
Both essential projects are already in planning – and both are coming soon…
👀 Watch This Space
With friends like APWG walking beside us, the future for BFiG Busumbala Nursery School has never looked brighter.
Together… we are building futures.
#letsbuildaschool
