Tel. +44 (0)1273 600030 (UK)
1of10
We started placements in Nepal in 2000 with our Asia Director, Richard, and have strong links with the communities in Besisahar and Gorkha. We employ a local representative, Gaurav, to support our projects - his predecessor and father, Om, was with us in Nepal from the start, so the Chhetri family are long-standing friends. We place volunteers in homes within the community providing these families with a source of income to cover accommodation for the volunteers.
We currently send small groups of volunteers to Nepal and in the long term we hope to continue and develop our projects to help with English in more of the Government schools in Gorkha and Besisahar. Tourism is Nepal's main industry, and most tourists speak English so, for many Nepalese, English is necessary to get a job. It is wonderful for the Nepalese children to experience an alternative method of teaching, as well as encouraging interaction through extra-curricular subjects.
We normally use the same houses for volunteers each year so families who host them are familiar with us and welcome volunteers into the community. We brief volunteers on customs and cultures so they are advised to be responsible and respectful to their host community. We also try to assist the same schools each term so the teachers are familiar with our volunteers and what they should be involved in. Post project reviews are always completed with schools and volunteers to make sure your help is always needed.
The schools in Nepal’s towns grew rapidly during the People’s War, when children left their village homes and local rural schools for the better-protected areas. These schools then had to deal with increased numbers but with few increases to resources and staff. Therefore, as a volunteer teacher you will be very useful in bringing not only the interest of the outside world but an extra pair of hands for the hard-pressed staff.
Our charitable arm has donated funds to a village called Long Dyop so they could rebuild the Rumti bridge swept away in floods from the Monsoon. Villagers faced a 2.5-hour journey to school and medical facilities without a bridge but this has now been reduced to 1.5 hours with the help of the charity.
There are many volunteers that choose to go on to fundraise for the their Nepalese schools and villages – donating school equipment, helping with funds for new or improved classrooms/facilities, and sponsoring children through education. For example ex volunteer Aidan donated over £600 to the Saraswati Blind School in Gorkha to improve the facilities and facilitate the use of Braile.
Living with the Nepalese is a simple way of life - with no running water or electricity, you will learn to appreciate these luxuries we take for granted in the Western World.
We interview all volunteers and discuss the project in great detail, you will be given documents about what to expect from your project from communities, school life, living within the village to how the Nepalese respect their environment. On arrival there is an induction course based in the remote Shivapuri, North of Kathmandu, to introduce you to Nepal. Gaurav Chhetri, our local representative will talk about the Nepalese and their history. You will also be introduced to basic Nepali phrases so you can integrate into the community.
We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same holiday can have different views!
