The Steve Sinnott Foundation Response to COVID-19 Crises in Phnom Penh

Nicola Palairet is the Partnership Development Director for Flame and has been working in Phnom Penh for more than five years now.

Life for the marginalised families living in Phnom Penh’s slum communities is tenuous at the best of times. Flame staff identify families whose children are unable to attend school because of financial pressure. We give these children the opportunity to go to school. For many it’s not just a chance for education, it’s a radical change in their life’s trajectory. Without it, these children would be unable to break out of the cycle of poverty. SSF and Flame are partnering to make a difference in their lives.

While official cases of COVID have been remarkably low in Cambodia, closing borders and the overall shrinking of the economy has led to massive losses in the tourism and hospitality sectors. COVID-19 has increased stress and financial hardship significantly. For some, there has been the threat of homelessness; for others, a decrease in daily wages has impacted the ability to put food on the table. Incomes for those ‘at risk’ is so low that hunger was already a serious issue pre-COVID. So, even when a family recognises the importance of education, food is the first priority – and school takes second place.

Many children have a deep desire to learn in school but are prohibited by the financial strain on their families. We have sought to address this. Children who in the past have had to work to support their families or provide care for younger siblings are now regulars in school and attend the Flame After School Centres daily where they laugh and learn, as well as get a nutritious snack and have their own toothbrush! There are computer classes for the older kids and daily literacy and numeracy lessons for each child. The centres are clean and bright, and the teachers who have also come from hard backgrounds, appreciate the challenges of education for these young kids. They know exactly what it’s like to face huge obstacles and overcome them. This is what we call ‘The Full Circle’.

As a young child, one of the children in our program, Sokea, walked the streets with a huge plastic sack of recycled bottles on his back. His recycling work to support his family left him no time for school. At home, his dad was on a small daily wage as a motorbike taxi-driver and his mother was bedridden. When we first met him at 9 years old, he told us that he would love to attend school. He had previously been in school but had to drop out to support his family. 

We visited his parents and asked permission for Sokea to attend public school and our After School Centre. We said we would supplement the family for the loss of Sokea’s income and they agreed. When finances were tight, however, his family continued to send him out to collect plastic, but this is often part of the transition from working to education. The family and Sokea understood the importance of regular school attendance but making school a daily priority was hard. 

Sokea has now enrolled at the University of Management to study law. He works part time for Flame and is a kind and conscientious guy who actively comes alongside other kids and encourages them to stay in school. 

You can read more about Sokea on the Flame website: www.flamecambodia.org/blog/sokea-from-collecting-plasticbottles- to-university21/1/2021.

The Steve Sinnott Foundation has partnered with Flame to support children of the urban poor in Phnom Penh who struggle to access education. SSF has provided school supplies for 250 children.

From Engage edition 22.
Nicola Palairet • July 12, 2021
By Ann Beatty August 15, 2025
Mike Fleetham of Thinking Classroom has written a book " Headlines: Inspiration, humour and advice for school leaders ". A collection of original ideas, advice from professionals, quotes, and tips to support and inspire all leaders. Perfect for new and established leaders working in education, especially headteachers. "Being a headteacher is like looking both ways before you cross the road, and then getting hit by an aeroplane." To Enter the Competition To win a copy of Headlines please share your inspiring education or life lesson in no more than 600 words. The winning article will also be published in our next edition of Engage. Send your words of inspiration to admin@stevesinnottfoundation.org.uk ๐Ÿ“… Deadline: 5th September 2025โ  Stuck on Ideas? Here are some questions and prompts to get you started! What’s the one lesson school didn’t teach you, but life did? Think of a moment that changed your path, what happened? What piece of advice has helped you grow the most? When did a challenge turn into an opportunity for you? What story from your life would inspire someone on the other side of the world? What’s the life lesson that unlocked your next chapter? โ  Your words could uplift, empower and be seen by many. Let your story inspire the world! ๐ŸŒ๐Ÿ’กโ  Good luck and we cant wait to read all the entries!
By Ann Beatty July 8, 2025
This week our CEO Ann and Jude (SSF Ambassador) visited schools in Coventry and heard about the wonderful work that students are doing to foster peace and community connection, as part of Coventry Arts Week. We visited Lyng Hall school in the morning and met with Ms Hagan and four of the schools UNESCO ASPnet ambassadors. They told us all about their recent project. The students took their art and poetry to the 80th Anniversary symposium in Ypres and Dunkirk. They shared with us some of the poetry they had written together with the students on the field trip and some of their own poems too. They also shared their future plans for working with their local primary school on peace and community. We also had the privilege of joining Ms Hagans class where they were looking at Caliban’s tale. Here is one of the students work
By Ann Beatty June 30, 2025
For my birthday this year I had the honour to walk 60 miles (yes it was a big 0 birthday) over 3 days to support the essential work of the Steve Sinnott Foundation of which I am CEO. Education in its many forms is essential for all of us to thrive and make the most of life's opportunities. The Foundation works to ensure that as many children and adults as possible across the globe can access the human right of education. The plan was to walk with friends and supporters who I hoped would keep me smiling along the way and it felt like a good way to make use of the Foundation’s “Get Moving” campaign. Here's how my Get Moving Fundraiser went on the first day. The 13th June I started my walk in London by walking from Barnet to west Hampstead and visiting my sister at her shop at Tree of Life where I got served a nice iced coffee to keep me going.