North London Food & Culture

Why It Matters: Kids Club Kampala


[quote] They just needed someone to say ‘I believe you are special, gifted and worth a huge amount in this world'” [/quote]

Olivia Barker
Olivia Barker

Did you take a gap year? Maybe worked in a bar in Spain or backpacked around Thailand?

During hers, 18 year old Olivia Barker spent six months volunteering in Uganda. She then decided, along with her friend Corrie, to set up a charity called Kids Club Kampala (KCK), which they ran in their spare time. Four years on, KCK works with over 4,000 children in sixteen communities across Uganda.

Originally from Birmingham, now resident in K-Town, Olivia’s links to NW5 began with her membership of St. Luke’s on Osney Crescent. A regular at the Assembly House and a fan of Flapjacks Cafe, Olivia is also involved with the local community through her volunteer work with C4WS homeless project.


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But it’s Kids Club Kampala that is her baby: working with disadvantaged communities, through community centres and local volunteers, it aims to provide basic needs for children. KCK runs various projects which aim to provide education for children and support women, all with the basic aim of empowering local communities.

They had some good news recently when Vodafone World of Difference agreed to sponsor four months’ full time work at their new office in Kentish Town, and the other week Olivia told us more about how readers can help out.

Kids Club Kampala
Kids Club Kampala

So how did the idea of setting up a charity come about? “When we were volunteering, our team member Sam invited us to come with him into the slums of Kampala to meet the children and the community there,” Olivia explains. “We worked in a slum called Katanga. People we would meet would warn us against going, saying the children were dirty, they’d steal our stuff and so on. I struggled to understand these comments when I looked into the eyes of these smiling kids who just wanted to play and have fun and be kids. They just needed someone to say ‘I believe you are special, gifted and worth a huge amount in this world’. I was heartbroken to see the situations that the children were living in, and went back every week to play with the kids and to try and help them.”

They tried to contact other organisations to help these children, but none were interested. “So we realized that we had to do something ourselves. Together with Sam, Corrie and I decided to set up the charity Kids Club Kampala to bring hope and love to these children living in desperate situations. That was in 2009. When we began, we were working with 200 children in one slum community. Now, after four years KCK has grown extensively to reach over 4000 children in 16 different communities throughout Uganda.”

Running a charity in your spare time at only 18 seems daunting. What were the biggest challenges facing KCK? “Definitely finances. There are numerous projects that are waiting to be implemented, many children needing to be sponsored, several centres that are waiting to be opened; yet currently KCK lacks the cash flow to do so.”

KCK lo2“Another challenge is that we are all still relatively young – I am only 23 – and so are all our trustees and volunteers. We don’t have a board of trustees who are old, wealthy and well-connected. We don’t really know any rich or influential people. This has challenges in terms of raising money and raising the profile of KCK.”

An important factor in its success has been the approach. Olivia points out that all the ideas for projects come from people in the community themselves: “We’re not in the habit of going in and telling them what they need or just supposing that we know what their needs are without even asking them.”

Similarly, all the volunteers on KCK projects are local and already have established relationships with the community, ensuring the projects are successful. Olivia is trying to raise the charity’s income level and develop more sustainable sources of funding. She is also raising the profile of the charity through developing publicity material and communication via social media and other areas.

If you want to help them out, you can donate via their website. You can also raise funds through hosting events like bake sales or quizzes (or something a bit more adventurous, of course).

Or, if you’re cash-strapped, why not lend a hand by helping to raise their profile? Like them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter and if you spot any local ‘slebs supping in the Grafton or the like, have a small word on KCK’s behalf.

Words: Louise Hogan


1 thought on “Why It Matters: Kids Club Kampala”

  1. safina kavuma

    This is very nice, thank you for being so kind to those young kids. I think we need people who are commited like you guys. Keep your dream moving, don’t let anyone put you down. I can’t imagine you have done this in only 4 years. Well done
    Safina

Leave a Comment

1 thought on “Why It Matters: Kids Club Kampala”

  1. safina kavuma

    This is very nice, thank you for being so kind to those young kids. I think we need people who are commited like you guys. Keep your dream moving, don’t let anyone put you down. I can’t imagine you have done this in only 4 years. Well done
    Safina

Leave a Comment

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