Working with our partner Pratham

Of the 26 million Indian children who enter school each year, half will reach Year 6 unable to read or write. We have partnered with Pratham, one of the largest NGOs (non-governmental organisations) in India. It was founded in 1994 and seeks to provide education to underprivileged children.

Of the 26 million Indian children who enter school each year, half will reach year six unable to read or write. We have partnered with Pratham, one of the largest NGOs (non-governmental organisations) in India which was founded in 1994 and seeks to provide education to underprivileged children.

We chose to work with Pratham as we believe that education is key to long-term societal change. In India it is estimated that only 50% of children aged 11+ are able to read and write. Recent research from the Indian Government puts the adult literacy rate at only 74% - compared to 99% in the UK.

Every item bought from Unfolded funds at least one month’s educational support for a child in India, through Pratham. The funds provided to Pratham are used to run two programmes; a permanent education centre for almost 200 children near Gurugram (Unfolded now covers over 50% of the running costs of this entire centre), and targeted intervention in schools across the country.

Although enrollment in schools in India is over 95%, attendance in many areas falls as low as 50%. Education can be disrupted for many reasons, but the main reasons include having to help at home looking after younger siblings or older relatives while their parents work; the children themselves needing to support the family and work; or because their family moves around the country as the parents seek work.

In March 2024 some of the team visited India, meeting the children and getting to experience life at the Pratham Education Centre

Anisha - Buyer for Unfolded

“I was extremely fortunate to visit the educational NGO, Pratham, and to meet with the children benefiting from our partnership and support. It was so inspirational to see the impact the Pratham centre has, and how important it is for the children to have somewhere to go to gain an education when they might otherwise have been forgotten and left behind.

Whilst I knew that Unfolded support was helping fund Pratham’s work in local communities, actually experiencing it first hand was really humbling as we here in the UK take access to education for granted. Learning that we at Unfolded now fund over half of the running costs of the permanent education centre near Gurugram was really a definite "pinch me" moment on the trip. This centre currently supports 160 children to catch up on their education and to be able to enter and thrive in mainstream education.

India has a 'no child left behind' education policy, which basically means that children have to be in classes with children of their own age group. Sadly, many children fall behind in their education through non-attendance, and when they then return to school, they are put into age specific classes that are ahead of their learning. All too often they end up dropping out altogether.

The centre helps these children catch up quickly to their peers through indepth and targetted learning that has been developed over 25 years by Pratham, allowing children to rejoin their age appropriate classes and carry on with mainstream education.”

Targetted Intervention

This is where the majority of Unfolded funds goes - to support children through short intervention programs in the Education Centre and in a range of schools in the Delhi and Utter Pradesh regions.

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