Education is Power

Educating girls

SAFE PLACE TO LEARN

image of three sets of hands with soap cakes and water basin to illustrate the water and sanitation work done by the uphill trust

Water and clean hands

A Healthy Life

LEARNING TO PLAY

Uphill junior school kindergarten graduates holding solar lanterns on the home page of the uphill trust charity

sustainability

Help a Child

Uphill is dedicated to giving the children in its community the best possible start – in a country struggling to educate its fast-growing population.

Uganda has one of the youngest populations in the world, with 78% of people under the age of 40. Unicef estimates that only 40% of children are literate at the end of primary school. Only 1 in 4 children make it to secondary school, as it is often beyond the means of rural families.

The school we support serves a poor rural area in western Uganda, where many of the children live on shambas (smallholdings that produce food for the family only). Money is in short supply and families often choose to send their sons to school and keep their daughters at home.

We are proud that girls make up half of the pupils at Uphill.

Education for all, no matter their circumstances, is at the core of the Uphill ethos.

“Sponsoring a child is like planting a tree! A tree bears many fruits that benefit many people! Elius Muhimbise, Director

Would you like to help a child to go to school?

We set up the Pupil Support Fund in 2016 to help some of the children in greatest need. Twenty one children are currently receiving financial support for schooling – a mix of boys and girls – giving them the knowledge and skills to live a better life.

group of uphill junior school children supported by uphill trust donors in 2024

How you can help

£15 per month will pay for a child to attend Uphill Junior School for a year.

One-off donations to the Pupil Support Fund are also welcome – these are used to help with medical or other unexpected expenses.

All pupil support money is ring-fenced to help children who would otherwise struggle to attend school on a regular basis.

DONATE TO HELP A CHILD

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STANDING ORDER INFORMATION

testimonial for the uphill trust pupil support fund

two children supported by uphill trust donors in uphill junior school uniform

What does your donation provide?

School & examination fees
Hot lunch in school every day
School uniform & shoes
Sports uniform
School bag, plus pencils and exercise books
Personal hygiene supplies (soap, toothpaste, etc)

“I really enjoyed my life at Uphill and I appreciate all the support that was offered to me and to the other supported children. Thank you from the bottom of my heart” Uphill Junior School Pupil

Meet some of our children

photo of an uphill junior school boy who has been supported by donors

In 2016 R’s parents divorced and they both disappeared, leaving 4 children to fend for themselves in Kampala. They were spotted by a neighbour who helped them to catch a long-distance bus to Fort Portal, where their grandmother lives.

R attended Uphill from 2016 to 2019, gaining top marks in the Primary Leaving Exam. He is now in Secondary School and hopes to go on to University. As the eldest boy, he will become financially responsible for his siblings when their grandmother passes away.

photo of an uphill junior school girl who has been supported by donors

J had four siblings and her mother was dying of cancer when she joined Primary 1 in October 2014. She was then 8 years old. J became the second pupil to be supported by an Uphill Trust donor. Her mother died in 2017 and she lost contact with her siblings. She now lives with the school director and his family.

J took the Primary Leaving Exams in March 2021 and is now doing well in Secondary School. She would like to train to be a teacher or a doctor.

L has 4 brothers and 1 sister and lives with his mother and grandmother. He joined Uphill in 2016, walking 2 kms each way to school and back every day. His family make a meagre living by making and selling building aggregate – the children collect stones and pebbles to be broken into smaller pieces by hand.

L passed the Primary Leaving Examination in November 2018 but his family did not have the funds to pay for continued education. He now works full time in the family business.

photo of an uphill junior school girl supported by donors

We first met M in October 2014. Her father died of HIV AIDS and her mother has now also passed away. At the time the family could barely put food on the table, yet she wanted to go to school. M was the first child to be supported by an Uphill Trust donor.

M enjoyed school but struggled academically and she left Uphill to join the local vocational school in 2019. We lost touch with her during the 2020 pandemic and suspect she may have become a child bride.

Help a Child

Would you like to help a child to go to school?

How you can help

or

What does your donation provide?

Meet some of our children

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