This school opened in September 2010 and is situated in Talinding, Serrekunda, a few km from central Banjul. The Trust became involved with the school, originally known as the JTT Nursery, when it became clear that the number of children had completely outgrown the existing facilities.

Having found and leased a large compound nearby, the Trust was able to build a new three-classroom school in just a few months – recruiting, as ever, a large local team of volunteers to help.

When the new school opened it was named in memory of Hilary Emery, whose family and friends kindly made a significant donation to the African Oyster Trust towards the cost of the building works.

To support the further development of the school, Aris Harrison-Price and Nigel Powell very generously agreed to sponsor both the head teacher and his assistant to attend Brikama College to work toward their Early Childhood Development Diplomas during the summer holiday recess.

Our focus has now turned to the fundraising necessary to keep HENS running successfully for the 105 young children who need it (see panel right).

The photos show on this page are from the visit to HENS by Hilary Emery’s husband, Steve. You can find the full story behind the origins of this project here, and a gallery of photos from the opening in September 2010 here.