Scroll to bottom of page for most recently archived news

NORTHBOROUGH PRIMARY SCHOOL       JULY 2009

The pupils and staff of Northborough Primary School have been supporting the Mustard Seed Project from the start. They donated toys, books and educational games which were sent out to the Mustard Seed School in February. More recently year 5 baked cakes and donated the proceeds of their sale to the project. The children have also sold and bought African jewellery and the profit went to the project. They will be selling more jewellery in the Autumn.

Currently the children are saving 1p and 2p coins in sweet jars and collecting mobile phones. Some of the children have also developed their own projects to raise money.

They have also been corresponding with the children from the Mustard Seed School and sending them small gifts which has been a tremendous boost to morale in Kenya.

Peterborough Evening Telegraph and Stamford Mercury came to school on 15th July 2009 to photograph the children handing over their jars of 1p and 2p coins. The money has since been counted and comes to £99.30. A very good term's work! Year 5 managed to collect £29.88 of that money and won the award for this term.

Year 5 also made cakes and sold them at the summer fayre for the Mustard Seed Project. The proceeds from their sale came to £22.40 making a grand total of £69.78 from Year 5 alone this year. The total from all the children's efforts this term comes to an impressive £180.20

And finally, one child from year 5, Charlotte Causey, wrote to the Queen to ask for her support. She received a personal reply from one of the Queen's Ladies in Waiting. Unfortunately her request was unsuccessful, but well done Charlotte for asking.

                      COUNCIL AGREE TO STREET LIGHTING                 JULY  2010

Following a petition by the CBO the Municipal Council has agreed to extend the street lights to the 4 main roads through the community. This will greatly increase safety in the village after dark. Mustard seed have supported the communities campaign and have led the delegation lobbying the senior council officials, the city councillors and the MP. It has been a protracted effort and although the Council have agreed the pressure will continue until the work is completed.

3000 BOOKS AND A FANTASTIC DAY FOR MICHE BORA PRIMARY SCHOOL October 2010

Books Abroad, a Scottish Charity, have sent out 3000 books for Miche Bora Primary School. The books which cover the whole of the primary curriculum and age range will be a great advantage for our children. They were carefully chosen by the charity and shipped to Mombasa.

Volunteers from the Charity came to visit the school on two occasions and Donna and Catherine provided a fantastic fun day for both teachers and children. Thank you so much both of you.

NEW WELL FOR WOMEN'S GROUP     OCTOBER  2010

After a long delay the well was started in October. It is being dug by hand and will take 8 weeks to reach the water level 80 feet down. The initial 15 ft were through compacted sand but we now into the dead coral ground rock. The team think that this is easier and safer so production should increase. The top 15 feet have been lined with coral blocks.

Unfortunately we have had to cut down a giant mango tree because the roots would quickly damage the well and could cause it to collapse.The Taratibu women’s group, trained by Mustard Seed, will run the project when it is completed and they will be responsible for maintenance and repair. The laundry to be built beside the well is being designed by the women’s group and a local mason so that it meets their needs. It is anticipated that this will be ready at the same time as the well. The water tank above the well will ensure a constant supply and a gravity feed to the laundry. This should be a great asset to the community and a sound business for the Taratibu women’s group.

WOMEN START POULTRY FARMING   SEPTEMBER 2010

Tiossi Women’s group, one of the ten groups trained by Mustard Seed, has started their own poultry farming business. They started with day old chicks which are fattened over 5 weeks and the sold to hotels and on the markets. The group are building additional premises to expand the business to 500 chicks, which means 100 per week going to market. Profit on each bird is about 180 KSh. The women are clued up on the business and have taken advice from poultry experts. The shed gives the chickens room to move about freely. Compared to other local producers the birds are in immaculate condition and should achieve a premium price.

                 FAMILY HEALTH TRAINING FOR UMBRELLA GROUP      OCT 2010

Trustee Winnie Mjambili and her team of highly trained and experienced retired nurses and midwives provided three days intensive training in preventive health care to 20 members of the women’s umbrella group (consisting of 2 members from each of 10 groups) The syllabus included family planning, HIV AIDS, childhood illnesses, recognising diseases, hygiene, cleanliness, childbirth and women’s illnesses. The information will be taken back to the women’s groups and shared with all the members. Follow up is being planned.

ENTERTAINMENT AT THE COMPUTER CENTRE   OCTOBER 2010

Many changes have been made to the courses offered at the Computer Centre, as the people of Mgongeni discovered when they investigated the entertainment outside the centre last week. The local youth supplied their sound equipment and a DJ to promote an open day when anyone could attend free of charge for a short taster session.

A wide range of new courses from basic beginners through intermediate and advanced courses to the internationally recognised ICDL have been introduced. Specialist courses will also be run on demand.

The costs of the courses, which are being kept to a minimum, were a major attraction. Whilst the project has to break-even to ensure long-term viability the aim is to make training affordable and accessible to everyone.

LAND RELEASED FOR URBAN HORTICULTURE      SEPT 2010

Said Shikely and his family, who own most of the land in Mgongeni, have agreed that members of the community can use the vacant land for recreation and horticulture until he wishes to sell it for development. This is a fantastic gesture that will have many benefits. The land will be cleared of 40 years of rubbish that is a constant source of disease. Families will be able to grow vegetables to provide a much better diet and relieve hunger. Some people will grow additional crops to sell to the community and at local markets to supplement their income. There are plans to build a netball pitch and 5 aside football pitch plus a safe play park for younger children.

VOLUNTEERS RAISE £300 FOR MUSTARD SEED         May 2011

Volunteer Naomi Rose Davis and her friend Lorna Tallowin spent three days baking and decorating cakes to sell at Stilton Cheese rolling on May 2nd this year. It all turned out to be well worth the effort however as the cakes went like, well, hot cakes! The volunteers also sold jewellery which had been made in Mombasa by local craftsmen.

This was a very successful day which was organised entirely by the volunteers themselves. A big thank you to Naomi and Lorna for all their efforts.

CELEBRATIONS AT THE NEW WELL           March 2011

The long awaited well was finally opened in March and was an excuse for a great deal of celebration and merriment including killing a goat for the feast.  But what a lot to celebrate. The water was deemed to be the purest in Mombasa and completely salt free. The well which had been paid for by Star4Africa is to be run by one of the women's groups, Taratibu. They will pay Mustard Seed Project a peppercorn rent and will charge for the water in order to pay for any future repairs and to get an income.

The water situation in Mombasa is becoming desperate. Very little well water is suitable for drinking as it is salty due to the proximity to the coast. Drinking water is piped in from a lake that is drying up. The pumps and pipes were put in by the British many years ago and need repairing. As a consequence piped water only reaches Mgongeni two or three days a week.

We hope to build another well in the near future if/when we get the funding from the CDF (Community Development Fund) in Kenya. Mgongeni needs at least another 3 wells if women are not to walk great distances to collect water on their heads and damage their spines.

                           MOSQUITO NETS FOR MGONGENI                   March 2011

Malaria is the biggest killer in Mgongeni especially amongst the under fives. Mustard Seed Project have been working to significantly reduce this problem and finally manged to get the support of PSI an American charity. PSI supplied us with 3000 nets at a very low price for us to sell on to the community. This was enough for one for each family in Mgongeni.

The nets are very large enabling most of the family to sleep underneath. However, because  they are treated with insect repellent which kills the mosquitos in the surrounding area,  even those in the same room who are not underneath the net are protected.

 NEW FURNITURE FOR MICHE BORA PRIMARY SCHOOL         March  2011

In February 2011 We were given a generous donation by the British and Foreign Schools Society to furnish and resource our school. We decided to ask another charity working in the area to undertake the work. Marianist is an American charity who offer vocational skills training to the poorest young people in Mombasa. The standard of their work is excellent and we are very pleased with our choice.

By the end of April most furniture had been delivered to the school. Acquiring the resources proved more demanding as we trailed around Mombasa. No one shop had what we wanted and despite our best efforts the teachers are continuing to work on this.

We would really like to be able to send out some of the resources from the UK but the taxes imposed upon us at the port make this a very expensive option. We are working hard to resolve this problem.

                   VOLUNTEER RAISES £3000 FOR MICHE BORA   July 2011

                 Donna's Students who helped with the fundraising

Donna Morrice visited  Miche Bora Primary School in September 2010 as  part of a group from Books Abroad a Scottish Charity. Donna fell in love with our children and promised to raise money to support them. Imagine our amazement when in the summer of 2011 she presented us with a cheque for £3000.

Needless to say Donna had help from other groups whom she had managed to inspire. Firstly she gave a talk to her local Macduff Rainbow group who decided that they would like to raise money for uniforms for our children. These six year old little girls did lots of fundraising and managed to raise £250 all by themselves. What an achievement.

Then Donna (a tutor for Holistic Therapy at Banff and Buchan College of Further Education at Fraserburgh, Scotland,) and her students held an open evening at the college and raised another £1500.

Not satisfied with that and working with 3 friends, Kim Craig, Anne Smith and Jennifer Fordyce she went on to organise an end of year show at a local club. Amazingly this also raised a massive £1500.

Brilliant Donna. A huge thank you from Mustard Seed Project.

STUDENTS TO RAISE MONEY FOR MUSTARD SEED PROJECT  Sept 2011

Mustard Seed Project where so excited to learn that the students at Dauntsey's School in Wiltshire have just voted for Mustard Seed Project to be their charity of the year. During the year the students will devise many fundraising events and all money will be donated to MSP.

The 750 students at this co-educational school for 11 - 18 year olds vote each year for the charity they would like to support. They chose Mustard Seed Project because they knew that every penny that they raised would count and make a difference. Each of the twelve houses thinks of their own fundraising idea in addition to whole school events.

MSP founding trustees Rita and Geoff went to the school on Monday 10th October to introduce the project to the school and to explain how their money would be spent. They also had the opportunity to meet briefly with a very enthusiatic group of charity representatives.

The founding trustees look forward to many more visits next year to update the students on progress and to offer support in their fundraising activities. They also look forward to receiving emails from students looking for more information.

A big thank you to Dauntsey's.

DAUNTSEY'S SCHOOL RAISE £4842 FOR MUSTARD SEED     April 2012

Teams of children from Dauntsey's School paddled from Devises to Westminster over the Easter Weekend to raise money for Mustard Seed Project. Despite the cold miserable weather they paddled the 125 miles and carried their canoes over 76 locks in an event known as the canoest's everest.

The teams had been training since January in freezing weather in order to be ready for this event but what an excellent result. Raising £4842.50 (including giftaid) is a magnificent achievement that will make a huge difference to Mustard Seed Project. A big thank you to all of you.

WAGING THE WAR ON RUBBISH     May 2012

In Mombasa there is no rubbish clearance. Rubbish gets dumped and in Mgongeni it gets dumped everywhere. Mustard Seed have been trying to educate and motivate the community for three years and finally it seems that we may be getting there. MSP's two pronged attack in March really does seem to have spurred people into action. A new group of women were given health and environmental training highlighting the dangers from the indiscriminate dumping of rubbish. 

At the same time others were given an incentive to clear the rubbish away. The football teams that are being supported by MSP were encouraged to believe that their support in clearing the rubbish would be very much appreciated. They are not of course doing this alone but with a group of young men helping many others have felt encouraged to join in.

VOLUNTEER FOR FREE IN AFRICA WITH MSP    AUGUST 2012

Thinking of volunteering abroad? Sarah and Becky above have just returned from three weeks working at Miche Bora Primary School. Mustard Seed Project are delighted to be able to offer free volunteering in Africa with their grassroots Kenyan Charity. They would like to hear from anyone who feels they have skills to offer to this disadvantaged community. Volunteers are initially welcomed to work in the school or computer training centre but further opportunities will be available from the start of the New Year.

Ideally we are interested in people who have previously worked in Africa or a similar environment. We are especially keen to hear from people with KS1 or Nursery School experience.  BUT, if you have a sense of adventure and a desire to help in Africa we are looking for you.

Sarah and Becky are primary school teachers in the UK and have just made a considerable contribution to Miche Bora school. They worked primarily in the nursery but also gave lessons in the other classes. Their efforts were very much appreciated by the teachers and by Mustard Seed Project.

And it wasn't all one way either. They loved working with our teachers and children and very much enjoyed staying with Miriam in Nyali and going on safari.

If you would like to learn more about the girls experience do contact MSP.

                  COMMUNITY EDUCATION FOR MGONGENI       JULY 2012

Mustard Seed have long realised that offering education to children alone would not be enough. As well as offering health training  and computer training to women we have now started adult education classes for those who missed out on school when they were young. Currently we offer basic reading and writing skills in Swahili but English classes will be starting in the next few months.

Mustard Seed are also opening a small lending library working in much the same way as a library in the UK. Initially we shall offer our services to our adult students and to teachers and pupils in other local schools which are not as well resourced as our own. This is a new concept for our community and it will be interesting to see how it develops.

     MARY STOTT AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT Sept 2011

English trustee and founding member of Mustard Seed Project, Rita Fowler was awarded the Mary Stott Award by the National Women's Register (NWR) in 2010. (The photograph shows Rita handing it over to Penny O'Bee the very worthy winner for 2011).This is an annual award for someone who is considered to have done something exceptional during the previous year. NWR has a national membership of 8,000 women (more than 420 groups in the UK, but with overseas ‘sister’ groups as well) who meet in local discussion groups. In its very important 50th year it honoured Rita with its Mary Stott Award.

Mary Stott was a feminist and an influential campaigning journalist who worked for the Guardian in the 1960s. She was very closely connected with the founder members of NWR and it is in honour of her that the award is given. The award was presented by Maureen Nichol one of the founding members of NWR.

   NORTHBOROUGH PRIMARY BUYS BRICKS FOR NEW SCHOOL July 2012

In January 2013 Mustard Seed Project's school, Miche Bora will not be large enough to accommodate a new intake of 25 children. The children at Northborough Primary School are buying bricks to help build a new classroom. 993 bricks are needed at a cost of 30p each.

A local landowner sold MSP a plot of land for around half its market value as his contribution towards a school for poor children. The plot is large enough to build a complete Nursery and Primary school for children from 3 to 14 years but we urgently need to build two classrooms and a toilet block for the children who hope to join us in January (the start of the new school year in Kenya.)

PAUL CYCLES 102 MILES FOR MUSTARD SEED PROJECT     July 2012  

Paul Furmston cycled 102 miles in eight and a half hours and raised £335 (plus gift aid) for Mustard Seed. Paul said that on the way he endured about 2 hours of very miserable rainy weather but the final half of the ride was very pleasant and except for a puncture with about 10 miles to go it was almost pleasurable. However his greatest pleasure during the ride was being greeted by his two sons at the end waving flags!... and getting off the bike! A great big thank you to Paul for his efforts.

                       DONORS GIVE HOPE TO HOPE    October 2012

Hope was born profoundly deaf. In Kenya only the rich get hearing aids and Hope's parents are very poor. MSP knew that they could not support Hope's needs long term but felt that nursery experience would be valuable to her..

 Then Hope got lucky. Thanks to two UK donors Hope received hearing aids in October 2012. It's impossible to imagine what it must have felt like for her to hear for the first time but the joy on her face told it all. And for us, being there with her and sharing this precious moment was a great privilege that we shall never forget.

But this is not the end of the story. As a result of the funding from the donors, the children and staff at Miche Bora Primary School, Hope's mother and Hope are being taught Kenyan Sign Language. Hope's parents are ecstatic and very supportive and grateful for the opportunities that are now open to their daughter. If their determination is a predictor of success the future for Hope is now looking good.

DAUNTSEY'S SCHOOL PRESENT A £19, 819.72  CHEQUE   Sept 2012

The students at Dauntsey's school in Wiltshire chose MSP as their charity of the year. This was great news for MSP but never could we have imagined that they would raise this truly amazing and magnificent sum of money for us. All  the students were involved and undertook a range of fundraising activities from making and selling cakes to paddling from Devizes to Westminster.

Money goes a long way in Kenya and this money will enable Mustard Seed to undertake many of the projects which were currently on hold.

We cannot thank the students and staff enough for what they have done for us. This money will change the lives of many in Mgongeni  and we truly hope that some of these students will visit the project to see quite what a difference their money has made.  THANK YOU

COMPUTER SUITE IS UPGRADED FOR MICHE BORA    March 2013  

Thanks to a UK donor MSP was able to upgrade the  computers in Miche Bora Primary School and this included some great software suitable for even our youngest children. Imagine the excitement of being able to learn computer skills through playing games. A novel idea for our children and certainly great fun. 

We are hoping to be able to offer free training for the community using the computer suite and plan to set this up on our next visit.

GENEROUS DONATION ALLOWS CONSTRUCTION TO START Nov 2013

As the result of an amazingly generous donation of £30,000, construction of the new building will start early 2014. MSP had needed this money to complete the ground slab before any classrooms could be built. Whilst the school can be built in phases it would have been very difficult to build the foundations in this way. Raising £30,000 was beginning to look like an impossible task, certainly in the short-term and then miraculously this money was given.

Words cannot express what this means for the community of Mgongeni. This will make such a huge difference to their lives both now and in the future. On their behalf Mustard Seed Project would like to say an enormous heartfelt thank you.

            MICROFINANCE TO HELP WOMEN'S BUSINESS       August 2013

Mustard Seed have long realised that offering education to children alone would not be enough. So many women have small businesses which  cannot expand because they just do not have the capital needed. Thanks to a donation  from CHCT (Catriona Hargreaves Charitable Trust) MSP will be able to expand its current pilot scheme loaning small amounts of money to 12 women with existing businesses.

The 12 women are officially registered as a group in Kenya and they have agreed to pay should other members of the group default. They have six months to repay the loan after which they will be allowed another loan if they are felt to be credit worthy.

HOLY TRINITY INFANTS RAISE £609 FOR MSP         Sept 2013

STELLA GETS NEW HEARING AIDS FROM SIEMENS      December 2013

Stella has been with Mustard Seed from the beginning. We always knew that she had a hearing problem but she coped. Sort of. Then imagine our delight when Siemens decided to offer hearing aids to a few poor children in Mombasa primary schools. We were so lucky to be included in this. Mr Noordin who is the representative for Siemens in Mombasa was also the audiologist who fitted the hearing aids for Hope our profoundly deaf girl. Hope's hearing aids were of course courtesy of a UK donor.

It's such an exciting development and one that just would not have happened if it had not been for the generous donation of hearing aids to Hope.

NEW LIBRARY SET UP BY VOLUNTEER    March 2013

Thinking of volunteering abroad? You can volunteer for free with Mustard Seed Project. Helen has just returned after two months working in Mgongeni. As you can see, she managed to set up our library of 1300 books, most of which were provided by Books Abroad. Our library is available to the local community but especially for local schools who would not otherwise have access to many books.

Helen was a great help to us, working with our teachers on IT and in the classroom and with Hope our deaf child. Helen also spent a little time working with Grace in her school for children with learning difficulties including the deaf. In fact Helen is now quite a proficient user of Kenyan Sign Language.

Best news of all is that the library is now up and running. Three local schools are now coming to borrow books and a fourth school are coming to read books once a week under our canopy. What a fantastic success and all down to Helen.

if If you feel that you have skills to offer please  contact                                      rita@mustardseedproject.co.uk  

 VOYAGER HOTEL PROVIDES EXCITING DAY FOR STD 2    Dec 2013

A big thank you to Voyager Hotel in Nyali, Mombasa for providing an amazing day for our Std 2 children. They took them out to the marine park in a glass bottomed boat where they then went snorkelling. That alone would have been exciting but to then be treated like VIPs and given a lunch of beefburgers, chips and juice followed by a selection of pastries was incredible. What an amazing experience and one certainly not to be forgotten.

A big thank you to Voyager Hotel for making a class of children very happy.

Children working collaboratively inside the new building          March 2015

On Christmas day we were sent some photographs that brought tears to my eyes. We had been promised by the contractor that the first phase would be completed for our children to move into at the beginning of the year but I just could not let myself believe it. Now as you can see the first phase is not only completed but the children have moved in. This has increased their learning opportunities hugely as the extra space allows for a far more varied teaching approach.

This new building enables us to to take in three more classes of children but we desperately need to complete the building to make the project sustainable for the future. Rent, water and electricity are a large monthly expenditure. In our new building, with our own well, solar panels and without rent, monthly outgoings will be considerably reduced. All helping to ensure sustainability for the future.

Sonal climbs Kilimanjaro for Mustard Seed   October 2015

Sonal decided to raise money for Mustard Seed and what better way to do it than with this incredible personal challenge of climbing Kilimanjaro. Not having done anything like this before she is working incredibly hard to get herself fit enough for this mammoth task.

Sonal grew up in Kenya and has seen first hand what it is like for people growing up in a slum. It is this that inspired her to try and raise the funds to furnish and resource a new classroom for Mustard Seed.

We have great admiration for you Sonal. Thank you so much for what you are doing. This will make such a difference to the children at Miche Bora School.

               Volunteer Abi from Performers without Borders      March 2015

Thinking of volunteering abroad? You can volunteer for free with Mustard Seed Project.  Abi spent a day with our children teaching them circus skills but she will be back next year preparing them to put on a show for the parents and the rest of the community.

The children (and the staff) had great fun learning to juggle, hula hoop round various parts of their body and many other skills. The great thing for Mustard Seed trustees was that Abi was in Kenya at the same time as they were which meant that they could also meet up with the volunteer and learn some circus skills

A big thank you to Abi

                                 Simran raises £443.58 for Miche Bora children 

 Market Deeping Community Primary School where Simran is a pupil have been supporting Mustard Seed Project almost since the beginning in 2009. Rita and Geoff had been in to update the children on the progress of the school in Kenya and it was here that Simran heard about the insecurity of the funding for the feeding programme for 2015/2016. Although it costs just 25p a day to feed a child, with 200 children the bill is enormous. The money raised by Simran will make such a difference. Thanks to her efforts, this money (including gift-aid) could provide 2,218 bowls of porridge and mid-day meals. A fantastic achievement.

Well done Simran!

         MICROFINANCE AND TRAINING TO HELP WOMEN'S BUSINESS  Nov 2014

                                       PHASE TWO COMPLETED       May 2016

We are so excited that phase two of our building has been completed.  Thanks to a grant from Allan and Nesta Fergusson another from Rotary in Deeping plus a private donor the first floor slab has been built and all the brickwork for the rest of the ground floor. This phase also includes the clinic and staffroom plus a cess pit and soak away which were paid for with a Rotary District Grant.  In fact the clinic is being used in the first instance as the head teacher's office until the completion work on the ground floor.

Can you help  to build and the school?

                        PROUD ESTHER CAN SIGN HER OWN NAME       March 2014

In common with many other women of her age Esther had never been to school. MSP decided to offer Swahili literacy classes to  Esther and other members of the community in the same situation. The take-up has been huge and Esther is just one of many happy women who can now read and write Swahili. And the benefits are huge; 'I can read my own texts' says Miriam. 'I can read the signs in the community' declares Irene. And 'I signed my own name when I went for a job' says Esther. It's hard to imagine a prouder group of women.

MSP also set up classes to improve the English of girls who had not completed school to improve their employment opportunities. Again we had a great take-up for these classes but the numbers have recently fallen significantly. It might sound like a failure until you realise that most of these girls now have  jobs. Could there be a greater measure of success?