The site for Issenye Secondary School was chosen by the Mara Diocese of the Anglican Church of Tanzania (ACT) which knew that the provision of local secondary education was poor. It was created 40 years ago with funds from the Anglican Diocese of Wakefield, Yorkshire. When school fees were later introduced, local children could not afford to pay them.
The school has good facilities for a rural boarding school: clean water storage from boreholes and rain, solar panels and mains electricity, laboratories, library, multipurpose hall , dispensary and a small farm.
For its girls, it provides a life which is safer from early marriage and FGM. Also, their attendance is not interrupted by family duties. The percentage of girls in the school has risen in recent years and is approaching 50%.
Academically, it is consistently in the top 10% of all secondary schools in Tanzania by achieving the two highest grades in the national school-leaving examinations for most students.
The charity’s trustees have all visited the school, some several times, and have taught lessons at the school and at the near-by primary school.
