Swiss4Lebanon School

Objectives

In January 2016, Swiss4Lebanon opened a school in Tyre, in the south of Lebanon, to provide informal education to refugee children between the ages of 5 and 15, with the objective of helping vulnerable children and improving their opportunities to pursue an education. The Community Centre is a safe place for over 150 students living in underprivileged communities in Lebanon. In addition to providing school education, the centre offers various recreational activities, such as sports, excursions, and hygiene education.

In an attempt to encourage older students to continue attending the school, S4L has launched a vocational training programme aimed at young people (15 to 35 years old), teaching them technical skills such as computer and AutoCAD programming, as well as teaching them English.

A special school for children with special needs has also been funded by S4L in 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this did not start until January 2022, a year later than anticipated, with tailor-made therapeutic classes. Lebanese instructors work at the centre, as well as a bus driver. This also gives S4L the opportunity to provide jobs in the surrounding communities.

The music school

In early 2022, Swiss4Lebanon has been able to add to the school by opening a music school to provide group music therapy to refugee children. Creative school lessons help children from difficult backgrounds to deal with their social, behavioural, and emotional challenges.

Music-based activities provide an ideal form of therapy. Children can relieve stress with music and calm down by listening to the sounds. Communication is also reinforced and improved, and children find creative ways to express themselves with movement, singing, listening, and following the beats and rhythms of the music.