UWS partners with local communities and national authorities at every stage of a school’s development. Over a period of five to seven years, we build local leadership capacity and secure government support, so schools are ultimately sustainably funded and independently run.

Advocating a locally-led approach

There are now 59 UWS Schools running independently under local ownership and operating as part of their respective national education systems. Each of these schools followed our phased transition process. This approach means we support the community as they gradually take on responsibility for the school’s daily operations. For example, UWS Education Officers develop locally-led school governing bodies where they provide training on school governance and administration.

Our strategic transition process reduces and releases UWS financial and staff involvement over time in a school. This allows us to extend education opportunities to more communities.

Integration into state systems

At the outset of a project, we sign agreements committing to a school’s long-term transition into its national education sector. Then, over five to seven years, we guide a UWS school towards achieving full state sector status. This includes recruiting government-funded teachers to support community staff and working with local authorities to gradually handover financial and administrative responsibility for operations. These strengthened systems secure a sustainable funding stream and safeguard the future of a school, so it can continue to thrive beyond UWS’ involvement.