Ghana School Aid was set up in 1986 by Eric Earle, Brice Bending and John Whittingham, joined by Warren Shaw, Eric Cunningham, Pamela Lewis, and as the group grew, by Alan Mayhew, Michael Asiedu, Prof. Lalage Bown, Kofi Ohene, Letitia Boateng, and many others who have lived and worked in Ghana’s education sector for many years. This is an incomplete list: we are in debt to our founders and the generation that drove and drives the creation and growth of our charity, their successors and the many friends in Ghana and the UK who keep us going today. We are a registered charity (No 299178) in England and Wales.

We fulfil our aims by making grants to schools, in support of local efforts, for basic infrastructure such as classrooms, roofs, toilets and washrooms, classroom equipment and learning centres that benefit the whole community, so that Ghanaian children can be helped to acquire a sound education appropriate for them to take their place in the world today. Our focus is on supporting schools in deprived and remote settings, and supporting girls’ access to education.

Projects are developed on the basis of requests submitted to Ghana School Aid directly by schools in need of support in Ghana and links developed through contacts in Ghana and in cooperation with other organisations. From time to time we may identify, develop and support specific innovative projects that have the potential for a wider positive impact on education in Ghana overall.

Over the years our activities have grown and to date Ghana School Aid has funded more than 300 projects in support of schools all over the country. Through our representatives in Ghana, Mr Kofi Ohene and Mr Salifu Baako (who are essential members of our Board of Trustees), other friends of Ghana School Aids and members of the charity travelling to Ghana from time to time, GSA follows up on the projects it supports and aims to establish longer standing relationships with schools and communities.

We work with the communities and locally source skills, workforce and materials wherever we can to ensure the projects are owned by the people they are for.

To this day we remain deliberately an entirely volunteer based charity. We have no paid staff and all work is undertaken on a voluntary basis because our supporters and committee members believe in what we do. Many administrative costs are met in the same way. As a consequence, almost all funds go directly to the charity’s work in Ghana. Other administrative expenses, principally fund-raising activities, publicity, and newsletters to supporters are kept to a minimum.

Day to day affairs of the charity are led by its Executive Committee of which the Trustees are an integral part. It involves a wide range of people from Ghana and the UK across all age groups including from the Ghanaian community in Britain.

The committee currently has 14 members including Chair William Spooner, Treasurer Nigel Dennis, and Secretary Michael Hammer and our representatives in the north and the south of Ghana Salifu Baako and Kofi Ohene. While we have some designated officers (Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Ghana Representatives) the workload is shared across the committee.

The committee meets quarterly to discuss projects, to make decisions about the allocation of funding on the basis of requests and proposals, and to determine the activities and the direction GSA should take for the future.

The work of the Committee and priorities for the charity are presented and discussed with supporters at the Annual General Meeting, usually held in early summer or early autumn.  

In 2026 we celebrated 40 years of Ghana School Aid with anniversary events in the House of Lords in the UK. For the autumn events and projects are planned in the North of Ghana and in the Volta Region.

Ghana School Aid needs and welcomes wide support from individuals especially those who have lived and worked in Ghana, have strong connections to the country, and from business companies and institutions with interests in Ghana.

Our Patrons are:  H.E. The High Commissioner for Ghana Ms Sabah Zita Benson, and The Rt. Hon. Lord Paul Boateng of Akyem and of Wembley.

The Secretary can be contacted at Secretary@ghanaschoolaid.org, or info@ghanaschoolaid.org.

Please get in touch!