Container van school in Tondo's Smokey Mountain

MANILA, Philippines - At the foot of what used to be the Smokey Mountain dumpsite in Tondo, Manila stands an unusual but amazing school  it is made out of container vans.

The project was started by Jane Walker, a British national and a leading force of the Philippine Christian Foundation (PCF). She thought that a project like a school made out of container vans, which came in from generous owners, could offer a schooling opportunity to a number of children around Tondo who did not go to school and were living and scavenging around the area. 

The container van school accommodates a good number of pupils up to grade four. It is a collaborative effort among a great number of people with the full support of the government sector.

Recently, the container van school under the auspices of the PCF was formally opened in a simple ceremony attended by officers from the British Embassy led by Gerome Vizmanos, Gretchen del Rosario, Mark Allen Sison, Geof , Paul Harmston, Cecile Tayag and Jane Walker and the generous supporters from various sectors and the government agencies.             

Several rooms in the school have been donated by and dedicated to the following: Victoria Court donated by Angelo King, ABC Int’l School, Wilowbrook Int’l. Schools, APL, Archion Architects, Australian Embassy, Boysen, British School of Manila, Holcim Cement, Hyder, International School Manila, KSPACE Int’l School, Pedro & Dionesia Esteves, PSF, PLDT, Smart, Motolite & PBSP, Rotary Club of Makati, Openwork Foundation, SHOM & IBF, The Body Shop, The Canticle Singers Malaysia, Tokyo International School, and Willowbrook International School.

The container van school offers hope for a better future for out-of-school children. It is as well an ideal model for accessing education to the poorest of the poor in all parts of the country where school buildings are hard to come by.