The Right to Dream

(Registered Charity No. 1108821) Right to Dream is a UK registered charity which offers underprivileged African children the opportunity to fulfil their true potential in life through sport and education. In 2006 Right to Dream was selected as a beneficiary of OilAid, the subsequent donation has enabled us to extend the unique opportunities we offer to underprivileged children through our Right to Dream Football Academy and our partner project, the Right to Dream Underprivileged Children’s Centre, based in Ghana.

Over the course of the last year we have been able to expand the Academy scholarship program. We now have a third generation of pupils who joined in September 2006 on five year scholarships and whom are now benefiting from the opportunity:

• To live in a safe, stable, healthy and supportive environment
• To pursue an international education, which will support them in their chosen future careers
• To receive pastoral care, spiritual guidance and emotional support
• To receive a healthy and balanced diet and accommodation
• To benefit from using quality sports facilities and receive expert coaching and support services (including physiotherapy and sports psychology), to allow them to develop their sporting talents.

In addition, the donation has also enabled us to send two more of our Academy pupils on scholarship to private boarding schools in the US in August 2006 and has helped us to secure a further four scholarships to private schools in the US starting in September 2007. These scholarship opportunities allow our Academy pupils to continue pursuing their academic and sporting careers and begin their first step towards their goal of attending University.

The donation from OilAid 2006 has also helped Right to Dream to safeguard the future of our graduates staying in Ghana, as a result of the education they have received at the Academy some of our graduates are now working in the sports industry in Ghana, earning a salary well above the national average which is helping them to build better lives for themselves and their families.

Importantly, the donation from OilAid 2006 has helped us to move towards our aim of building a multi-sports academy which will benefit even more children. This new, non-profit Sports Academy will offer scholarships to girls and boys and will include football, tennis, golf, athletics, basketball and boxing. Critically, the new academy will allow us to extend our education programme which tailors for individual needs. We recognise that by building a multi-sport academy we can ensure that we are able to continue to offer these unique opportunities to even more underprivileged children in the future, using sport and education to empower these children to achieve their true potential in life.

Finally the donation from OilAid 2006 has helped us to support and develop the activities at our Underprivileged Children’s Centre (UCC) which is underpinned by the same principal objective of the academy; to offer children from a background of extreme poverty the opportunity to fulfil their true potential in life. The UCC works with children who are currently unable to attend school as a result of a lack of financial means and/or developmental level/needs. A significant number of these children are orphans and children living on the streets, who in the face of such adversity are struggling to achieve their dream of attending school and gaining meaningful employment. The UCC provides children with the individual support they require to overcome the many problems they face in trying to achieve their true potential. As the UCC develops the project will be able to develop further a strategic and operational partnership with the new Sports Academy.

Right to Dream would like to take this opportunity to extend our sincere thanks to all the organisers of OilAid 2006, particularly Michael Holland, Bob Finch and Marc Thompson, and to everyone who attended the event. If you would like more information on Right to Dream, please visit our website: www.righttodream.com or email Anna Hegley, Development Manager.