Gala’s generosity helps refugees to learn

HUNDREDS of refugees in West Africa are getting a better chance to learn, thanks to Rotherham company Gala Tent.

It all began when the charity ABC Children’s Aid approached Gala, the UK’s largest importer and exporter of tents, marquees and gazebos, asking if they could spare a marquee to replace a broken down hut that had been used as a classroom.

Gala said “yes” and hundreds of children living in Burkina Faso, who would otherwise have been unable to go to school, are now being taught to read and write inside.

John Beynon, of ABC Children’s Aid UK, said: “The community is delighted with the marquee - they’ve never seen anything like it before.

“It has doubled the space available for teaching and given the young people a real interest in attending this school.”

Gala Tent’s managing director, Jason Mace, who started the business in 1999 with an investment of £2,000, said: “We are delighted to have been able to help a community that really needs it.

“ABC Children’s Aid does some excellent work and for a small cost to ourselves this looks to have had a huge impact on young people in this area of Burkina Faso.”