Chankhasi Primary School

Nkhotakota · Malawi

Chankhasi Primary School

A community school by Lake Malawi, built brick by brick with the help of friends from near and far.

Our story How you can help

About the school

Takulandirani. Welcome.

Chankhasi Primary School is a community school in Nkhandwe Village, a short walk from the shore of Lake Malawi and about 15 km south of Nkhotakota town in central Malawi.

It began because the young children here had nowhere close by to learn. The nearest primary school was more than 6 km away, and in the rainy season the rivers on the way were too dangerous for them to cross.

Local leaders gave the village a plot of land, and the first lessons were held in a small church and under the trees. Since building began in 2009 the school has grown one classroom at a time, with the community and friends from near and far all playing their part. Today it has more than 300 pupils and eight teachers.

pupils
300+
teachers
8
the walk to school before Chankhasi
6+ km
first classroom begun
2009
Map of MalawiChankhasi Primary School is near the western shore of Lake Malawi, about 15 km south of Nkhotakota town in central Malawi, north-east of the capital, Lilongwe.TANZANIAZAMBIAMOZAMBIQUELake MalawiMzuzuLilongweBlantyreChankhasinear Nkhotakota100 kmAfrica
Near the western shore of Lake Malawi, where the sun rises over the water.

Our story

Built brick by brick

Chankhasi has never been built all at once. Every classroom stands because someone chose to help, from families in the villages to friends on the other side of the world.

Three brick classroom blocks with pale roofs around a sandy school yard, with trees behind
The classroom blocks around the school yard.
  1. The beginning

    A church and a school

    Local leaders give the people of Nkhandwe Village a plot of land. Its first building, with mud walls and a grass roof, is a school on weekdays and an Anglican church at weekends.

  2. Early days

    Brick walls and a first teacher

    A new school committee rebuilds the church with brick walls and a tiled roof, and takes on a first teacher, paid for by visitors’ monthly gifts. Lessons are held in the church and under the surrounding trees.

  3. 2008

    Plans for a full primary school

    The committee draws up plans for a full primary school, and an architect checks them before any building starts.

  4. 2009

    The first classroom

    Building begins in June. Supporters sponsor the roof trusses one by one, among them pupils at Morna International College in Ibiza, who raised money with weekly biscuit sales. When the first classroom is finished, the school holds an open day for local leaders, education officials, parents and pupils.

  5. Every summer

    Visiting builders

    Students from Kingswood School in Bath visit through Open Arms Malawi, helping to raise new school buildings year after year.

  6. 2016

    Seven classrooms

    The school now has seven classrooms, a library, a staff room, a storeroom, separate toilets for boys, girls and staff, and a water tank, with 377 pupils and seven teachers.

  7. [Year]

    Homes for teachers

    Two new houses for teachers, built with the Dutch charity World Servants, help the school attract the teachers it needs.

  8. 2024

    A classroom and a boarding house

    Students from Lancing College help build a new secondary classroom and a boarding house for girls.

  9. Today

    Chankhasi today

    More than 300 pupils learn at Chankhasi with eight teachers, and there is still more to build.

School life

A day at Chankhasi

Photo to come: a lesson in the classroom

In the classroom

Lessons follow the Malawi curriculum, from reading and writing in Chichewa and English to maths, science and agriculture.

In the garden

The school has its own garden plot for rice, bananas and vegetables, in one of Malawi’s great rice-growing districts.

On the pitch

Football and netball are played with passion, and matches against visiting schools draw a crowd from the whole village.

In the community

Chankhasi belongs to the villages around it. Pupils whose families could not afford the small termly fee have paid in bricks instead, carrying a brick a day across the road from the kiln to the school.

Every pupil at Chankhasi between 2008 and 2016 painted a ceramic tile, and the tiles were fixed to the outside of the classrooms as a record of everyone who had their first lessons here.

Friends of Chankhasi

Friends near and far

Chankhasi has been built by many hands. Some belong to families who live a short walk away; others travelled thousands of miles to lay a few bricks.

Photo to come: visitors with pupils and teachers
  • Kingswood School Bath, with Open Arms Malawi Donations, and summer building visits for more than a decade.
  • Ashville College Harrogate Generous donations to the school.
  • Morna International College Ibiza Roof trusses, paid for by weekly biscuit sales, 2009.
  • World Servants Netherlands Two new houses for teachers.
  • Lancing College Sussex A new secondary classroom and a girls’ boarding house, 2024.
  • Could your school be next? Find out how to help

How you can help

Help Chankhasi grow

There is still plenty to do. The best way to help is to get in touch, and we will tell you exactly where your support would go.

What the school needs most

More classrooms

So that every class has a room of its own. Classrooms are built truss by truss: in 2016, £420 paid for one roof truss with its roofing, cement and labour, and each sponsor’s name was engraved on their truss.

More teachers

Eight teachers share more than 300 pupils, so every new teacher makes a real difference.

Books and desks

Textbooks, exercise books, pens and chalk are always needed. In 2016 a new desk cost £40.

Ways to help

  • Volunteer to teach

    Teach a subject or a sport, help pupils read and speak English, and bring fresh energy to the school day. If you would like to volunteer, get in touch.

  • Visit with your school or group

    Visiting school groups have helped to build Chankhasi. We would love to welcome more.

  • Give

    Get in touch to give, or to sponsor a desk or a roof truss, and we will tell you exactly where your gift would go.

  • Spread the word

    Tell your friends, your school, your church or your workplace about Chankhasi, or hold an event to raise money for the school.

Every brick counts.

Get in touch

Contact

Get in touch

Whether you would like to visit, to teach, to give or simply to find out more, we would love to hear from you.

Write to us
Chankhasi Primary School
Nkhandwe Village
P.O. Box 460
Nkhotakota, Malawi
Email
donations@chankhasi-school.org
WhatsApp
[number]

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