Barbara Academy
- Barbara Leighton Academy began on 7th January 2013 as a small nursery school with funds from the World Mission Team budget, an outreach programme of the Parish of Ashtead. and has grown year on year to include primary education and, most recently, Junior Secondary classes
- This has prompted the change of name to Barbara Leighton Comprehensive School
- This growth has involved careful planning to ensure that the challenges of funding the construction of additional classrooms and other facilities, and funding increased operating costs, most significantly the employment of additional teachers, can always be met
- 125 pupils are now registered and we have plans to grow cautiously, subject to maintaining a prudent financial approach, including our firm commitment to: -
- Always pay our staff on time every month – not always the case in other private schools and something highly valued by staff members – we currently employ 14 teachers plus ancillary staff (Catering, Security, Administration etc)
- Provide a universal Feeding Programme for all pupils as a top priority - a proven method of improving their academic performance and general health
- Future growth will also never jeopardise the quality of education through recruiting only fully qualified teachers and maintaining the advantage of small class sizes – these average 10 pupils per class, whereas government schools can frequently have 90 or more pupils per class!
MILESTONES ALONG THE WAY
2024 Achievement
In response to a change in policy by the Kenya National Government, a Junior Secondary School is being established at BLA, eventually comprising provision for Grades 7, 8 & 9.
A Grade 7 class has already been accommodated. Thanks to the generous response of our donors, a Grade 8 classroom has already been built in preparation for 2025 and a new Science Laboratory will be constructed and equipped.
We still need to fund in due course the construction of a Grade 9 classroom and an expanded Computer Laboratory. There also remains the ongoing challenge of funding the increasing operational costs, including additional teachers and scaling up the Feeding Programme, which is considered a key priority.
- Development of full Primary School completed
- Grade Six Pupils will be the first to move from Barbara Academy to Secondary Education in December