Yumba Special School

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The Yumba Special School, located in the Tamale metropolis in Northern Ghana, was set up in 2004 specifically to work with children who have learning difficulties and mental health issues. The school focuses on teaching the children life skills through vocational classes rather than more conventional education. Currently it has 118 students registered, and 26 official members of staff (however, attendance at the school is much lower). Though it has some state support, the children are not as supported as they can be. This is partly due to overall lack of Teaching Learning Materials (TLMs), and partly because the school lacks the proper facilities and staff capacity to cope with the number of children they teach and their disabilities.

A group of volunteers from the UK and Ghana have begun working at the Yumba School to make improvements to the school and seek to reduce the stigma faced by people with learning disabilities in this community. The project is seeking to: increase the number of teaching and learning materials at the school to ensure that children with learning disabilities have access to more specialised learning; to improve the school and teaching environment for the pupils and staff ; and to raise awareness of the community of the capabilities of individuals with a learning disability.