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Author: Dianne Ashman

One resource, double the impact

One resource, double the impact

Back in 2021, at the height of the Covid pandemic, a great partnership developed between one of our volunteers, Joanne, and Lisong, principal of Mary’s Little Lambs nursery and lower basic school in The Gambia.  Joanne owned and ran a nursery school in the UK and was involved in training nursery-school teachers, and the original plan was for her to go to The Gambia and work with Lisong to run training sessions for nursery teachers there.  However the pandemic intervened…

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Morocco – a new project and old friends

Morocco – a new project and old friends

Last October Mariama and I spent a busy week in Morocco.  We were there to meet potential new partners for people and places in the village of Amlougui, to visit Education for All who we have been working with for many years, and so that I could introduce Mariama to the people we work with in Morocco and take her to see the projects in action. Our first stop was at the village of Amlougui, where we stayed for three…

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‘Both professionally fulfilling and personally enriching’ – Shiobhan’s volunteer story

‘Both professionally fulfilling and personally enriching’ – Shiobhan’s volunteer story

This report was written by volunteer Siobhan about her placement in The Gambia. The first question I am always asked is why?  I wanted to share my skills and experience in a school and country where that type of support was genuinely needed, somewhere I could help in a small but meaningful way. I spent a long time looking for the most appropriate placement, as many opportunities focused on teaching English or doing crafts. There was lots of correspondence before…

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What I love about being a people and places local partner

What I love about being a people and places local partner

Written by Fatou Hydara, people and places local partner in The Gambia To tell you a little about myself, my name is Fatou Hydara, I was born in Essau village in the North Bank region of The Gambia, completed my primary education at Essau Lower Basic School then went on to Berending Upper Basic School, 10km from her home, completed high school at Essau senior secondary school. Throughout my education I undertook extra-curricular activities, including awareness-raising groups including peer health…

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Mariama – my first visit to people and places projects in Morocco

Mariama – my first visit to people and places projects in Morocco

It was sometime in 2024 when I began to have talks with Sallie and Dianne about them retiring and ITTOG taking over the running of People and Places. They had spoken to the heads of ITTOG about it and they suggested that I take over the directorship from the UK which is basically taking on Sallie’s role. I was excited about the opportunity as I have been a part of People and Places since the early days of its inception….

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‘It was awesome!’ – Volunteer Mateo reports on his volunteer experience in Cambodia

‘It was awesome!’ – Volunteer Mateo reports on his volunteer experience in Cambodia

Mateo is a young Romanian student, just finishing his first year at university in Italy.  He heard about the possibility of international volunteering from a fellow student and approached us about organising a placement during the summer vacation.  He is a keen and able sportsman, and told us that ‘engaging in a practical project, deepening my abilities and doing it at the benefit of a company with a focus on social issues is the dream for me.’  We matched Mateo…

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How one thing led to another – two volunteers’ varying experiences in Morocco

How one thing led to another – two volunteers’ varying experiences in Morocco

Trish’s volunteer story started with a group placement in January 2025 – she was part of the Kindness Adventures group who travelled to Morocco to volunteer with our partners at Education For All.  The group of 10 ladies from USA and Canada facilitated and participated in a variety of cultural activities with 30 girls from the Education for All boarding houses and two of their house-mothers. Together they did a guided tour of the medina in Marrakech, a cycling tour,…

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Meaningful ICT for children – any ideas?

Meaningful ICT for children – any ideas?

Here’s an interesting challenge for you.  We all know that the ability to use IT is becoming an essential skill in the modern world.  Children learn to use technology from an early age and in the UK and across Europe and North America it is seen as an essential tool for learning.  But how to teach IT to children where IT equipment is not readily available?  This is the problem facing Mary’s Little Lambs, the primary school in The Gambia…

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Matching volunteers- building connections between them and the projects.

Matching volunteers- building connections between them and the projects.

Written by Musufing Ceesay, who has recently joined the people and places team as volunteer support co-ordinator. Hi there to everyone, my name is Musufing and I’ve been working alongside Dianne who has been guiding me through the essentials of matching volunteers to the various projects. We started the process in November 2024 when I also met Sallie. Tiny bit of background – I’m from the UK, Leeds via Jamaica, I lived in Gambia for 8 years and am there…

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Group volunteering – a different way to volunteer – a story from Morocco

Group volunteering – a different way to volunteer – a story from Morocco

In January we organised a second group placement for Kindness Adventures, an American organisation looking for an opportunity to give back to local communities. Jax (founder of Kindness Adventures and an enthusiastic participant tells us: ‘We believe that travel can be a powerful tool for personal growth and transformation, and we strive to create meaningful and impactful experiences that allow our guests to connect with the world in a deeper way. We are committed to fostering a culture of kindness…

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