Increasingly, schools that suffered destruction in the course of the full-scale invasion are getting ready to welcome students in refurbished and comfortable facilities. These have been reconstructed by a collaborative effort involving professional builders and volunteers from the Brave CF as part of the U-LEAD initiative "Local School Rehabilitation for Resilience."
Balakliya Lyceum No. 5 is among them. After the enemy missile landed directly on the schoolyard, the roof, windows, and classrooms were damaged. During several months of relentless work, it was possible to carry out a number of repair works:
- Replace the damaged slate with a metal profile.
- Complete the installation of the roof drainage system.
- Fully furnish the hall, including concreting the cracked floor slab, covering it with modern linoleum, installing a suspended ceiling, replacing heating and electrical systems, updating wall decoration, and installing metal-plastic doors.
- Upgrade washroom areas adjacent to the dining room.
- Equip the corridor with necessary amenities.
- Renovate the library.
- Transform the storage room into a functional classroom through comprehensive repairs to the floor, ceiling, and walls, installation of a ventilation system, establishment of a bathroom, and creation of an emergency exit.
Most notably, following the restoration of the premises in the basement, the SavED foundation, another partner of U-LEAD with Europe, promptly furnished the space with furniture and equipment. Subsequently, the digital learning center "Vulyk" commenced its activities in the renovated area.
About the initiative:
In recognition of the huge challenges in the education sector of municipalities during the war, the European Commission’s Service for Foreign Policy Instrument (FPI) has provided U-LEAD with Europe with additional resources – over 5 million EUR – to reconstruct 12 schools in Kyiv, Chernihiv and Kharkiv regions (implemented by CF Brave) and build 25 Digital Learning Centres in Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Kyiv regions (implemented by CF SavED), in addition to a number of other capacity building activities, such as advising, consultations and trainings to create a safe and supportive environment for children to learn (implemented by the Centre for Innovative Education "ProSvit").