Q • Learning Nepal Trust CIO is a team of Western social entrepreneurs. By providing grants and funds to Nepalese schools, we make it possible for children and young people in remote Hangdewa and environs, on the slopes of Kangchenjunga, to have better life chances through education.
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You can make a difference today by sponsoring a child or making a donation
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A Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience on top of the World
Who Are We?
The Q•Learning Nepal Trust CIO
Q·Learning Nepal Trustees bring a wealth of understanding of good business practices, good governance and global standards of education. This enables us to ensure that 98% of money donated funds schools in Hangdewa and environs and this translates into children who can achieve their potential. We are proud of what they have achieved.
Improvement
Improving the life chances of young people in the Hangdewa region of Nepal.
Sustainable
Sustainably funding and inspiring a quality education and connection to the rest of the world.
We
Believe
We believe that education is the corner-stone to a fairer world and can allow the village to continue its way of life. The Q·Learning Nepal Trust CIO funds a quality education and the villagers, via a Nepal Charity, choose how the children develop so that this harmonious, diverse, and beautiful place maintains its culture and uniqueness whilst lifting itself out of poverty.
What HAVE THE SCHOOLS IN HANGDEWA ACHIEVED WITH OUR GRANTS?
Timeline
2007
- Legal commitment to the villagers of Hangdewa to build a school for quality education (written on rice paper)
- First visit by the founder, Lesley Warburton, to Hangdewa via jeep, lorry, bus and walking (arriving 24 hours late!)
2008
- First volunteers liaise with community
2009
- School with 5 classrooms built for 5-11 year-olds
2011
- All children given uniforms (made by local tailors) and text books (Nepali curriculum)
2015
- 100 children and 10 teachers in the school (many in temporary classrooms)
2016
- Yellow school for 5-14 year olds - upper school completed with 9 classrooms and a staff room
- Toilets improved
- Clean water installed from source at mountain top
- First lap-tops and English books reach the village
- Q. Learning Trust set up as a Nepali charity
2017
- Volunteers teach art, science and chess – and learn to make momas
- Pauline and Laurie Bennet visit from NZ and become major sponsors
- Tarmacked road to nearby Taplejung enables visitors to travel more easily to the village
2018
- Orange Montessori school opens for 60 4-6 year olds – 3 teachers travel to Kathmandu for Montessori qualifications
- Aptitude Software donate 11 computers for the school plus volunteers from UK, Poland and USA to install them and liaise about getting WiFi
- GRID 91 provides two volunteers from Mumbai to examine school safety and security
- Lego makes an appearance for the first time in the village
- First eye-tests and free glasses
2019
- Aptitude Software donate a further 14 computers for the school
- Practical Science starts with a microscope
- ‘Poorest children’ bursaries set up
- Sanitary wear made available to those girls who need it
- New toilet blocks built at both schools
- Undergraduate students enrolled in universities. Alumni include engineers, clinicians, computer studies, teachers, Nepal Army ……
2020
- Rental Villa ‘Kangchenjunga View’ opens for visitors: sustainable tourism to support schools and provide employment
- Playground developed for Orange Montessori School
- 200 children and 15 teachers in schools (4-14 year olds)
- Lockdown support for teachers and families
- UK Charity Commission gives charitable status to Q.Learning Nepal Trust CIO number 1192365
- All teachers engage in self-development for spoken English and IT skills improvement
2021
- Over 40 Ambassadors from all classes learn from their Mentors and Buddies in other countries
- 25% of poorest children receive full bursaries including uniforms, books, glasses etc
- Partnership working with Millfield School in the UK
- School competitions include social essays, book reviews, cookery recipes and storytelling
- Prefects and Head Boy and Head Girl appointed
- Basketball court built
- Cabling brought to the school for excellent internet connectivity
- School extended to Class 8 (220 children aged 4/15)
- First practical science teacher appointed
- First Zoom lessons begin in lockdown
2022
-Practical science room and creative rooms built
-School closures due to Covid minimised by online teaching for older children
-56 Kindles given to the school, each with access to 1,000 children's books
-Sport, art, photography and music lessons added to curriculum - football, volleyball, cricket, soft-tennis, table-tennis, guitar and traditional madal
-School dancers perform in Taplejung for the Taplejung Marathon and Tourism Festival
-First school trip: Class 8 visit Ilam and ride horses and try out boating
-Taplejung Schools' Chess Champion from Q.Learning Nepal School
-Individual desks made for older students (not just benches)
-First Zoom lessons from Millfield School in UK prepared by their students
-Volunteers able to return to the village post-Covid
-Laptops donated by mentors, Attraqt and K3 Business Technologies, prepared by AAG
-237 students aged 3-15
-55 Ambassadors with international mentors
-25% of students on 100% bursaries: tuition, uniforms, textbooks, glasses, sanitary wear
-All new girls given bursaries to encourage equal access to a quality education
Founder's Story
Hangdewa's Story
Popular Donation Gifts
You can make a difference today by making a donation.
This is one of the poorest regions of one of the world’s poorest countries. Without support, this village would be largely cut off from the rest of the world and the 21st Century – and the children from opportunities to learn, develop and reach their potential.
£5
Pens for an entire class for a year
£15
Child’s books & uniform for a year
£100
School fees for a child for a year
£350
A teacher’s salary for a term
It is truly amazing what can be done if enough people get together and help
I am so excited about our plans and how relatively small amounts of money as donations can bring about enormous change. I look forward to welcoming you as a member of the Q. Learning Nepal Trust family.
Lesley Warburton, Founder
Become A Volunteer
A Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience on top of the World
Is Nepal on your bucket-list?
Are you ready for an adventure in the big mountains?
Do you have a friend (or two) with whom you would like to travel?
Are you up for contributing to a school with some of the most eager, respectful and playful children you will ever meet?
Testimonials from happy visitors and volunteers
Read the personal stories of visitors and volunteers from all across the world.
I think the kids are the key reasons I have been back twice, although trekking in the countryside is spectacular. They are so innocent, adorable, polite, etc. I also enjoyed the science experiments we did with the boys and girls as they are so smart, eager to learn, and happy to take leadership or join a team.
People there are friendly and hospitable – although they are poor in wealth, they are rich in mind.
Doris Liang
Hong Kong, Visitor
It was a privilege to visit Hangdewa school in its early years. This sunny, yellow school nestles in stunning scenery in rural Nepal. It feels like the end of the world but you can see from the smiles on the children’s faces that this school is fostering a love of learning and is opening up opportunities previously denied to them. It is a hopeful, happy place and deserves support especially when one thinks of how privileged our own children are in the UK to have access to a good education. Well done Lesley and Q Learning – what an achievement
Lynda Haines
United Kingdom, Visitor
I visited the school and village in November 2017 before the local airport became operational. Despite the long journey to get there, I was rewarded by discovering a thriving centre of learning filled with young children, often trekking for hours every day in order to attend, with a hunger for knowledge.
It was clear that the school was the centrepiece of the village with proud parents taking the time to chat to their neighbours as they walked their children to the school gate. The community is proud of their school and the doors it can open for their children. And, by visiting the school, you can see what a difference it can make to these young lives. I hope it continues to expand and continues to offer education to those who might otherwise miss out.
Simon Stevens
Australia, Visitor