Run a variety of sport focused programs from physical education lessons in school, after school sports clubs to coaching local academy teams.

Placement Overview

This placements offers a varying level of involvement depending on your previous experience and enthusiasm. We are currently providing placements in the following areas:

• Physical Education Teacher – Get involved with running sports and PE classes with either a set or varied age range. Ghana is football mad but if you have a passion for another sport the children will be more than willing to try out any new game that is explained! (Who knows we might have the next sports star in the making here). Depending on the size of the school in which you are allocated and how many classes we agree to run you may get time to assist/run classroom focused lessons in other academic subjects throughout the day.
• After School Sports Clubs – Once the children return home and finish their chores such as fetching the water for the family there are no activities or hobbies for them to engage in, leaving them often to walk around town on an evening. If you have the enthusiasm and determination then you can assist in establishing a local sports club for the local children to join and channel all their energy. This project is advised for people with mid-long term stays and with high energy levels as you will often run this along side a main volunteering placement during normal school hours.
• Football Academies – There are a couple local football academies that take their training very seriously! These usually run on an evening and weekend when the children are not at school. Selection is tough but they provide top quality players. This project is perfect for people with previous coaching experience that can offer a fresh input into training and coaching the team. 

Schools in Ghana not only need your help to cope with the growing size of classes, lack of a ‘subsitute’ teacher process but also to bring a fresh approach to lessons which are traditionally very dictation focused. Physical Education is not common in the majority of schools, they often have school football teams for example but nothing to include the whole class/school.
We aim to improve on the standard of physical education for the youth to maintain physical fitness, improve concentration during school hours as well as skill and motor skill development to name just a few.

Support Staff – Accommodation – House Utility Bills – Pre Departure Support

We charge cost price for this project just so we can cover your stay and employ local support staff to increase loyal employment. This placement includes accommodation in a modern style house for the semi rural area of which we are based with great views and surroundings of the local towns and rainforest. All house utilities are included for your time, you will have use of the kitchen, electricity throughout the house and running water which is a luxury among the area of Kwahu. You will have a member of our local support team living in house or close by depending on the volunteer numbers so there is always someone on hand for any questions or support you may need.

Budget an additional 30 – 60 Ghana cedis per day for transport costs.

We work with a number of schools within the local community and slightly further out. Volunteers will usually take taxis back and forth to their placement site. It is very easy to take shared taxis in town and they are very reasonably priced. Most of our schools will require volunteers to pay transport between 30 cedis and 60 cedis a day. The more remote village schools are usually located down tracks and therefore cost a little bit more to reach. Our team will be able to assist volunteers group together for transport and where to find taxis etc. Volunteers are usually able to head off into the town after school easily to shop for food supplies, grab a cold drink or meet up with friends before heading home and the ease of taxis offer a really flexible experience for the volunteers.

• Physical Education Teacher – Working alongside the teaching staff you will arrange a schedule to fit inside their current curriculum where you will be able to take various classes out for PE lessons on the school field. Supplies are often lacking so thinking outside the box is often crucial. Classroom theory sessions can also be ran depending on your qualifications and/or experience.
• After School Clubs – Depending on your own level of independence you could be placed in a teaching placement throughout the day and then for a couple of hours in the afternoon/evening run a sports club in a park for the local children. Previous clubs setup have been linked to a volunteer’s teaching placement who they have invited along after hours as well as organising a different sport/game each day for the children in the town of the volunteer accommodation. 
• Football Academy – With this placement you will review your skills and experience with the team manager, together you will draw up a plan on how you can best input into the team, it’s development and your personal enhancement at the same time. This is best for mid-long term volunteers as most of your work will be done in the evenings and weekends. Previous volunteers have often preferred to tie this in with our teaching placement so that they are kept busy during the school hours.

If the number permits we aim to group volunteers together at a particular school or project. You will work closely with a teacher and report to the Headteacher when placed in the schools should you have any issues. When visiting the academy you will be dealing with the management team there on site. A member of our team will also spend a portion of their day at the project to assist in anyway and offer any guidance should it be needed. Most volunteers strike up a strong bond with the teachers and are treat as another member of staff as if you were always there. It is not uncommon to be invited round their homes for dinner at an early stage as a way of saying thank you.

Sports or coaching qualifications/experience is not compulsory for this placement, your level of experience and confidence will gauge what level of students would best suit and will be discussed between the team and yourself on your first day introduction. The greatest traits of a volunteer are enthusiasm, empathetic and the ability to adjust to alternative cultures. You will get the most of our your trip by opening your mind to new experiences and beliefs whilst also bringing your own to the table.
We expect volunteers to visit their placements Monday – Friday, exceptions can be made for long weekends of travel etc but we hope for the children and yourselves to get the most of your placement this is kept to a minimum.

We will be on hand any time of any day to support you in your placement and trip as a whole. There will always be someone you can speak to or get a hold of should you want to discuss anything or require any guidance, from organising after school clubs to changing your placement. Our team living in the volunteer house will also be able to offer advice regarding travel plans and the local area so you will soon feel at home.

Regarding your placement we advise bringing any sports or coaching equipment you can as these items are not available in our local area and only cheap children’s footballs and used football boots can be found at the markets.Coloured plastic cones for a variety of sports come in very useful.

During school holidays if a volunteers assignments falls within these dates then we will organise a holiday school at one of our partner schools. During this time there is a more relaxed setup where volunteers split into groups to run lessons such as arts, English, reading, sports and games. Or we can run sports clubs and competitions for the local children at one of the fields in town.This also has the added benefit of providing parents with childcare during this period whilst they balance their work which is usually farming or trading.
The school holidays usually fall three times a year; few weeks around Easter, few weeks around August and a few weeks around Christmas. Specific term dates are not communicated by local authorities until closer to the time so difficult to tell in advance. Leading up to the vacation, exams may be in place so volunteers can offer an assisting role invigilating, helping out in free times or helping on our other programs.

Please note this an example of a schedule. Times vary on different schools and term time.
After school volunteers are free to go shopping in the local markets, return to the volunteer house or visit the local swimming pools.

What’s Included

Services provided in your volunteering fees

Accommodation

We currently have 2 x three bedroom volunteer houses located in the peaceful town of Pepease overlooking the rainforest. Later in the year we aim to move to a larger 13 bedroom house in a nearby town.

Bedrooms –
Bedrooms are shared usually between 2 – 4 people. Most bedrooms are a medium size and come with a mix of single, double or bunk beds. All doors and windows in the house are covered by mosquito netting or covered completely however you are more than welcome to bring a mosquito net for your bed although usually not necessary.

Bathrooms –
There are 3 shared bathrooms in the house so offer plenty of space and privacy during your stay. Most of the time we have the benfit of running water which is a local luxury so showers and toilets will work as usual. We ask to consider others when using the water as it’s a valuable commodity in Ghana.

Kitchen –
We have one large kitchen with modern facilties such as gas stove, fridge freezer and a range of utensils. It is a self catered placement however plenty of food stuffs can be bought from the market such as bread, rice, pasta and many fresh ingredients. We also have connections with local people in the town who will be able to prepare your meals or teach you how to cook local dishes.

Living Room –
There is a large living room with sofas, TV and a dining set for use by the volunteers. Evenings are often spent in here and volunteers are welcome to bring DVDs or memory drives with movies to watch although local television channels are provided.

Garden –
Surrounding the house is a fenced garden, this offers privacy for relaxing in the sun or sitting out in the evenings. There is also a washing line space for volunteers to use.

Store Room –
We have a small store room where we keep left over teaching materials and resources for new volunteers to use. You are invited to leave any items you may not use here for the next person to continue the flow. Master copies of activity sheets or lesson plans are a key item we hope to see
keep growing in the store.

Utilities

Your stay in our house includes the bills for electricity, gas for cooking and running water.

Support Staff

From application to departure you will receive friendly and helpful advice along the way. Starting from connecting to our management team online once we receive your application you will be met upon arrival to Ghana by our support team who will also live in house with you should you have any questions day or night.

Additional Services that we can arrange for you

Airport Collection

We can arrange for one of our vehicles to collect you from the airport and bring you directly to the volunteer house although fuel, airport parking and toll fees must be covered by yourself – payable in US dollars or Ghana cedi on the day. (As of November 2019 this is around 400 cedi | You will be shown the costs for transparency as it’s completely not for profit).
We will arrange this as standard procedure unless you choose to OPT OUT as we would feel much more comfortable with you arriving into a new country that the team are on hand to greet and reliable vehicles made available for you and your luggage.
Upon arrival our Volunteer Support and Driver (Frank & Eben) will meet you outside the arrivals hall at Kotoka Intl. Airport. They will be holding a sign with your name on so they should be easy to spot!

Meal Packages / Catering

Our placement as standard is self catering however if you are not too comfortable in the kitchen we can also arrange meal packes on a weekly/monthly basis where our support staff or a local member of the community will prepare 2 meals day for you for an additional charge.

Clothing

We also have Atlas branded tshirts and clothing available so you can look the part at the placement site. Further details are provided once you are confirmed onto our team and these are available to preorder so we can have it ready for you upon arrival.

Not included in your fees

Flights

You will need to arrange your own flights into the airport in Accra which is Kotoka International Airport. We will then arrange a collection for you where our team will meet you at the airport and begin the 3 hour drive to the volunteer accommodation in the Kwahu mountains.

Visa

You will need to apply for a short term tourist visa through your local Ghanaian embassy. Although this needs to be processed yourself we will be on hand should you have any questions or require supporting documentation to provide for this.

Travel Insurance & Vaccinations

You will require a yellow fever vaccination certificate to gain entry into the country.
For current vaccination and malaria advice you can visit the MASTA site by clicking here.
For travel insurance quotes you can visit the experts at World Nomads by clicking here.

Food, Snacks & Beverages

This is a self catering placement so you are provided in the house with a kitchen with basic items to cook at home. You can easily buy fresh ingredients and drinking water from the local market in town. There are also street food sellers and cheap restaurants providing local and western cuisine for when you’ve had a long day.

Dates & Fees

2 week minimum duration. There is no maximum duration and we would suggest staying as long as possible to achieve the biggest social impact possible.

We have volunteers and placements throughout the year, therefore you are welcome to arrive in any month. We are also flexible with being able to arrange airport collections so you are able to arrive on any airline into Kotoka International Airport at any time on any day of the week.

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