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PEAS operates an innovative, SmartAid model, which emphasises local ownership and long-term sustainability. PEAS schools typically become financially self-sustaining within a year of opening, allowing them to run independently of UK-fundraising.
The PEAS SmartAid model means we raise funds for the buildings and start-up costs of a school. The school is able to open debt-free because it merely needs to cover the running costs of the school.
Government subsidies, lunch fees, income generating activities such as agriculture, and boarding fees underpin the sustainability of our schools. PEAS believes in free education, and so last year we piloted a Public Private Partnership (PPP) with the Ugandan government that provides a subsidy per student in some of our schools, making hundreds of places completely free. This year, this subsidy is now available across the PEAS network. In addition, the income from fees and government subsidy is supplemented by Income Generating Activities (IGAs), which also teach the students important business and vocational skills.
The sustainability of our schools is what makes the PEAS model scalable and innovative. Let's consider the alternative. PEAS could set up one or two fully funded schools in Uganda, raising the money for buildings and all the running-costs (including teacher salaries and all school supplies), which would allow us to offer completely free places to all students at PEAS schools. While this would mean that a few hundred kids would get a free secondary education, it would not be sustainable nor scalable in the long-term. The school would rely on money from the UK, placing huge financial pressure on the UK team, and if that stopped suddenly, so would the school. Dependency of this kind does not constitute sustainable development.
Under the PEAS SmartAid model, our schools are not dependent on UK money to continue. This means that funds raised in the UK can be spent on creating even more new schools allowing PEAS to provide thousands and thousands of new secondary school places for young people. To find out more about the five key principles of our SmartAid model click here.
After one year, PEAS schools are financially sustainable through low fees and goverment subsidy. They do not depend on UK-fundraising to cover running costs, and they are thus able to run independently and indefinitely.
