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Hostel Kandaloya

There are elementary schools in most villages. From 6th to 11th grade (Junior Secondary and Senior Secondary School) and from 12th to 13th grade (Advanced Level), lessons usually only take place in regional schools, i.e. the young people have to leave the village, as colleges are generally only available in larger towns.

As most families cannot afford these expenses, we provide hostels for girls and boys in Beragala and Kandaloya to enable children from poor families to attend secondary schools.

Hostel in Beragala

Hostel in beragala

The girls’ hostel in Beragala was officially opened in 2020. Shortly afterwards, it became necessary to open a second hostel for boys. There are now 29 girls and boys receiving care in the homes.

Four caregivers and a cook run these children’s homes, providing a family-like environment, accommodation, meals, help with homework and, where necessary, extra tuition.

In Sri Lanka, girls and boys are not permitted to be accommodated in the same building. For this reason, the boys’ home is located around 50 metres away from the girls’ home. The children eat their meals together, and they also meet in the shared building to do their homework. It is only in the evening that the boys return to their own home. This legal requirement places a considerable additional burden on the children’s home. A caregiver must always be present in the boys’ house during the night to ensure the children are cared for properly and safely. In addition, the separate building results in ongoing rental costs. These expenses are unavoidable, yet they provide the children with a safe and loving home where they can focus entirely on their education and their future.

Our visit 2026

During our visit to the children’s home, we were given a warm welcome once again by the staff and the children.

The purpose of our visit was to review the administrative procedures and discuss the organisational processes at the home. Together with the staff, we analysed existing workflows and, where necessary, developed new ideas and improvements.

The children’s wellbeing was particularly important to us. Daily life at the home had previously been heavily focused on learning, leaving hardly any time for play and relaxation. Together with the staff, we put together a new daily timetable that allows the children adequate time for play, rest and leisure besides their schoolwork.

Another important decision was to build new toilet facilities with integrated showers in the girls’ block. The existing sanitary facilities were in an unbearable state, which is why modernisation was urgently needed.

We also approved the extension of the kitchen. The construction work is due to be completed in the course of 2026.

In July, the new toilets and showers were ready for use.