Three organisations have come together to refurbish the first nursery school to be established in Ghana, the Queen Elizabeth II Educational Foundation, to enhance teaching and learning.
The companies, Agridev Real Estate Limited, Clubhouse Ghana Limited and Fairllop Property Developers Limited, undertook school infrastructure and provided equipment and have handed over the building to the managers of the 76-year-old early childhood learning institution.
The project, which cost GH¢ 220,000.00, transformed a non-functional kindergarten infrastructure into a modern haven for early childhood learning.
Also, two classrooms have been renovated for two streams of kindergarten pupils, while the washrooms have also been renovated.
Additionally, the kindergarten block has been expanded to now have a school kitchen, a canteen and a sick bay.
School
The Queen Elizabeth II Educational Foundation is a private community school established in 1950 when Lady Arden-Clarke, wife of the last Governor of the then Gold Coast, Sir Charles Noble Arden-Clarke, led philanthropists to build an educational facility for children, known at the time as the Accra Day Nursery.
The Accra Day Nursery, the very first of its kind in the Gold Coast, was then entrusted to the local community under the leadership of the Gbese people on whose land the institution was located.
The school’s name changed to ‘Queen Elizabeth II Educational Foundation’ in 1961, when the British monarch, accompanied by Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, paid a historic visit to children at the school.
Operating just a crèche and a kindergarten in its prime years, the school is said to have enrolled a large number of children of notable individuals, as well as children of successful traders at the Makola Market nearby.
Over the years, the school has advanced from its purely nursery status and gone into the full stretch of basic education, serving mostly families in the Gbese community, children and dependents of Makola traders.
While the number of school children has increased, the facility has barely seen an upgrade, mainly due to a lack of financial and logistical support.
Pledge honoured
Leading a delegation to hand over the completed project, the Portfolio Executive Manager at Broll Ghana Ltd, Madalene Smit, said the initiative to renovate the facility was in fulfilment of a promise to return after undertaking a similar venture two years ago.
She said in 2024, Club House Ghana Limited joined forces with the Accra Financial Centre (AFC) to renovate the school’s main crèche and nursery building, refitting all wrecked equipment and introducing new educational and sanitary facilities for the school.
“It was unfinished business when we gave a facelift to the crèche and nursery department of the school two years ago.
“So, we came back to help.
The children are an important and adorable part of our community and we are happy to make an impact on their development,” Ms Smit said.
Important facilities
The Headmaster, Mershak Annan, on behalf of the management, staff and learners, expressed gratitude and appreciation for the kindness and dedication of the three institutions towards the school.
“I have always maintained that nursery education is the bedrock of education in general, so we must do everything we can to build a sound foundation to support our basic schools.
“Today, we are very excited and most grateful, especially for the thoughtful addition of important facilities which we didn’t have before, like a kitchen, a furnished canteen and a sick bay.
“We are very happy, but like Oliver Twist, we cannot stop asking for more.
We would be happy if our benefactors could consider building us a children’s playground next time,” Mr Annan stated.
Source:
www.graphic.com.gh
