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Satkanya Village Primary School – The Juniper Trust’s 6th School
A 7.8 magnitude tremor on 25 April 2015, followed by a 7.3 aftershock two weeks later, killed almost 9,000 people. More than 740,000 homes and 32,000 classrooms were damaged or destroyed throughout Nepal but nowhere was worse hit than the steep, crowded and poor mountainside dwellings close to the epicentre in the Sindhupalchok District and the villages between Jiri and Lukla.
Shree Satkanya Primary School is situated in Sindhupalchok which was at the heart of epicentre in the earthquake and saw massive devastation with over 10,000 people killed. The village was completely destroyed with all the villagers having to live in tents and temporary shelters. The school has 82 students and 6 teachers, all the 7 classrooms were either damaged or destroyed, the position of the old school was also prone to landslides, so it had to be relocated. The children were taught in temporary tents for over a year.
The school was finally completed in September 2016 and new uniforms and equipment were delivered for all the students in time for the opening. The school cost £20,000 to rebuild using local labour from the village, with an additional £2,000 to provide new uniforms, school bags and equipment for all 80 children.
Although the project was occasionally daunting, the Juniper Trust persevered with the invaluable help of local volunteers and the communities themselves. As news of their good work spread, many other villages approached the Trust for assistance in rebuilding their own schools. The Trust remained committed to its Nepal Earthquake appeal and set an ambitious target of rebuilding 10 more schools by 2020, making a total of 20 schools rebuilt by that year.
The Juniper Trust rebuilt a further 7 schools before work came to a halt due to the Covid pandemic in spring 2020. However, the resilience of the Nepalese people shone through, and as soon as it was safe to do so, they resumed work on the remaining schools. In December 2021, the 18th school, Bampti Kindergarten, was completed, and Maili school was successfully rebuilt in 2022 with the help of the first western volunteers to return to Nepal since the pandemic.
Although the project was occasionally daunting, the Juniper Trust persevered with the invaluable help of local volunteers and the communities themselves. As news of their good work spread, many other villages approached the Trust for assistance in rebuilding their own schools. The Trust remained committed to its Nepal Earthquake appeal and set an ambitious target of rebuilding 10 more schools by 2020, making a total of 20 schools rebuilt by that year.
The Juniper Trust rebuilt a further 7 schools before work came to a halt due to the Covid pandemic in spring 2020. However, the resilience of the Nepalese people shone through, and as soon as it was safe to do so, they resumed work on the remaining schools. In December 2021, the 18th school, Bampti Kindergarten, was completed, and Maili school was successfully rebuilt in 2022 with the help of the first western volunteers to return to Nepal since the pandemic.
Work has already begun on the 20th school rebuild, in the remote village of Ranjana Beni, and the Trust is committed to completing it by November 2023. The Juniper Trust’s success in rebuilding these schools is a testament to the power of collective action and the determination of the human spirit, and we are grateful for the support of all those who have contributed to this important cause.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has contributed their time, effort, and resources to make this amazing project possible.
Change Their World. Change Yours. This Changes Everything.
30 Wordsworth Street
Penrith, Cumbria
CA11 7QY, United Kingdom
Registered Charity Number: 1053356
