Issue 131

Children in the Neeson Cripps Academy library.

For two decades, the Cambodian Children’s Fund (CCF) has been a beacon of hope in one of Cambodia’s most destitute areas, the former Steung Meanchey landfill, where entire families historically survived by scavenging. The CCF’s mission is to transform the lives of the most impoverished, marginalised and neglected children in Cambodia through high-quality education, leadership training and direct support programs. Its work is grounded in the belief that education serves as the most effective means by which to dismantle entrenched cycles of poverty and neglect.

One might ask how can such radical change be achieved purely through education? The answer is that the CCF has a holistic approach to education that sees it more as an ecosystem of support for communities, rather than something that is confined within the four walls of a classroom. It’s an approach designed to nurture a child from a community-centred perspective, providing healthcare, safe housing, leadership development and family support. It’s rooted in a deeper belief that transforming communities whose histories have been shaped by generational poverty requires equipping children with the practical tools provided through education, as well as the social frameworks that support them to use those tools to thrive.

Children enrolled in CCF’s programs aren’t just students. They are being shaped into the next generation of leaders who will spearhead further change in their communities. Leadership training is interwoven with education, furnishing students with academic skills, confidence, moral integrity and practical experience needed to tackle the deep-rooted issues of poverty and inequality. Through leadership camps, volunteer projects and global opportunities, CCF students are prepared to apply their learning in real-world contexts, aking them active participants in Cambodia’s future.

A key resource that supports this leadership development is the CCF library at the Neeson Cripps Academy. The library serves as a hub of learning and imagination, housing more than 10,000 books, short story videos, and e-books. For many students, it is their initiation into the world of stories, knowledge and research materials, and has a central role in fostering academic curiosity, as well as the critical thinking necessary for leadership.

In mid-2023, SCIS was approached by a partner library management system (LMS) vendor, Softlink, offering an opportunity to support the Neeson Cripps Academy with catalogue records. Softlink were donating their Oliver v5 LMS and asked if SCIS would provide access to SCIS Data.

At Softlink, we’ve always believed in the power of libraries to transform lives, so when we heard about the amazing work being done at the Cambodian Children's Fund, we knew we wanted to help. We approached SCIS because the seamless integration between SCIS Data and Oliver v5 makes cataloguing easy, ensuring the Cambodian Children’s Fund library can manage its resources efficiently and give students access to the best possible tools to support their education. (Softlink Education)

Om Pisey, Grade 12 Student at Neeson Cripps Academy

The SCIS leadership team concurred that the CCF is a worthwhile cause and aligns with our parent company ESA’s broader strategy of ‘supporting excellence and equity in education’. We agreed to provide an ongoing complimentary subscription to SCIS Data to enable the CCF to continue their incredible work.

Alongside SCIS, StoryBox Hub also donated a free subscription to its services.

StoryBox believes every child should have access to quality literature and stories. We were delighted to be able to gift Cambodian Children’s Fund a subscription to StoryBox Hub and to know that the children are enjoying watching our stories. (StoryBox Library)

The central role the Neeson Cripps Academy library plays in the CCF’s work serves as a reminder of the powerful role libraries can play in reshaping the social fabric of communities. Unconfined by geography or culture, they remain timeless catalysts for positive social change and educational uplift.

Yet, for libraries to realise their full potential, they must offer more than access to resources. Beyond the physical presence of books, much of a library’s impact is derived from the quality of the services it delivers to its community.

At the centre of this are the staff who work tirelessly to develop collections and engage students, helping them to find their curiosity, passion for learning and sense of belonging in the world of knowledge. Alongside this are the systems that allow school communities to search for and discover the resources, knowledge and insights that fuel academic growth and personal exploration.

A recent case study on the Nelson Cripps Academy library, published by Softlink, shows the CCF library’s success is driven by committed librarians who keep it operating and open to students six days a week. Supporting this is the presence of a well-managed library management system (LMS), containing quality catalogue data that enables students to quickly and efficiently locate the materials they need. This access empowers students to explore subjects in depth, advancing their academic progress while nurturing a love for learning and independent research.

Om Pisey, a Grade 12 student at Neeson Cripps Academy, illustrated this point in SoftLink’s case study, saying that the library’s systems have ‘... helped me discover new books and stories by offering features such as personalised recommendations based on my reading history. It’s easy to do research by myself’.

The Neeson Cripps library exemplifies how thoughtful, well-resourced educational initiatives can empower communities and spark change far beyond the classroom. It serves as a reminder that fully realised libraries are and always will be engines of transformation.

At a recent celebration marking the 20th anniversary of the Cambodian Children’s Fund, which was attended by the King of Cambodia and the Cambodian Prime Minister’s wife, tribute was paid to the charity and the thousands of lives it has lifted out of poverty. A message of thanks to SCIS from the CCF encapsulated the magnitude of their work: ‘It is hard to believe that all the people, including children in this community, were scavenging and living on a rubbish dump not so long ago. What a quantum leap has occurred.’ This reflection highlights the extraordinary transformation that has taken place, driven by the power of education and community support.

SCIS, along with Softlink will continue to support the CCF.

Learn more about the education solutions that the CCF provides for Cambodian children: www.cambodianchildrensfund.org/how-wework/education