With each passing year the hardship endured by the Palestinian people worsens, as is shown by the almost daily coverage by television and the newspapers. The impact on the lives of young people is dramatic, even traumatic. This is borne out by the letters and email messages we receive from those who live in and visit the area.
Why Now?
In 2001 the Cambridge Nazareth Trust responded to a fact finding study in the Holy Lands of Palestine and Jordan into the current condition of the schools funded by the Latin Patriarchate headed by the then Latin Patriarch HB Michel Sabbah.
The Facts
34 church schools: 12 in Palestine, 22 in Jordan
15,000 students,
900 teachers
Many families cannot afford the basic annual school fee
Teachers’ pay is about 50% less than in government funded schools
Today's Crisis
Increasing unemployment among breadwinners of families in Jordan, the West
Bank and Gaza
Many teachers leave each year for better paying jobs
Schools may be closed if voluntary funding is not obtained
Projects
1. SCHOOL FEES: £18 a month secures a student's education
2. KEY TEACHERS: £150 a month bridges the salary gap to retain key
teachers
3. SMALL PROJECTS FUND: regular or one-off donations for teaching
materials, educational aids, essential building maintenance and ‘sensory
support’ for the deaf and blind
Control
The Latin Patriarchate Education Department identifies and prioritises
the schools most in need of help
All funds are audited and accounted for to the sponsors of CNT
Who can Sponsor?
Individuals - Parishes - Groups - Schools - Companies
The Trust is Registered with the Charity Commission in the United Kingdom (Reg. # 289084). You can make a single donation (the value of which can be enhanced under the Gift Aid scheme if you are eligible), or pledge monthly or annual contributions to the Trust. If you wish, your contributions may be earmarked to help support specific aspects of our programs. Pledge forms, Gift Aid declarations, and Banker's Order forms can be downloaded from our Contacts page
UK Schools Giving Program
There are many other ways that individuals and organisations in the UK can help provide for the needs of those in the Holy Land. One of our initiatives is the CNT UK Schools Giving Programme. This scheme encourages schools in the UK to build special relationships with schools in the Holy Land, many of which lack the most basic of teaching equipment and educational materials. So far schools in Northamptonshire have collected sixty boxes of books for distribution to their brothers and sisters in the Middle East.
For further information on the Latin Patriarchate schools, you can visit their website at http://www.latin-schools.org
