When Free Education Is Still Out of Reach
06 November 2026
Public basic-school tuition is officially free in Ghana, but uniforms, books, stationery and other costs can still keep vulnerable children out of the classroom. John Adu, Headteacher of High Priest Academy, explains why the school offers completely free education and what that opportunity can mean for a child’s future.
This article draws on WorldShare’s conversation with John Adu, Headteacher of High Priest Academy in Accra, recorded for the On Mission with WorldShare podcast.
For many children, starting school is an ordinary part of growing up. But for some of the children John Adu meets in Accra, it is an opportunity that could easily remain out of reach.
Public basic-school tuition is officially free in Ghana, but attending school can still require a uniform, exercise books, stationery, transport and other essentials. For a child living with adults who cannot or will not meet those costs, “free education” is still unaffordable.
Missing out during these early years can shape everything that follows. Children need to complete junior high school and pass the necessary examinations before they can progress to a public senior high school and benefit from Ghana’s more comprehensive Free Senior High School programme. Those who never receive a basic education may never reach that opportunity.
Through High Priest Academy, Living Word of Faith Ministries provides free education and meals to vulnerable children, giving them the opportunity to enter the classroom, continue learning and work towards a more hopeful future.
Choosing to serve his community
John Adu is a qualified educator with a master’s degree in education and experience of working with different organisations in Ghana. Rather than pursue roles offering greater professional or financial rewards, he chose to become Headteacher of High Priest Academy. He had seen how quality education can widen children’s opportunities and reduce their vulnerability and wanted to use his own education for the wider community as well as his family.
“I don’t want to commit myself only to my family, but to ensure that other people in my community and neighbourhood get quality education to better their lives.”
For John Adu, this is also a practical expression of his Christian faith.
“The word of God tells us to care for the needy and everyone around us. In my little way, this is what I can do.”
His words reflect something central to WorldShare’s approach. We do not send people from the UK to direct the work. We stand alongside local Christians who understand their communities, recognise the challenges people face and are already responding with compassion and commitment.
When children are sent to work
John Adu explained that many families in Ghana have a large number of children and may struggle to support them all. Some children are sent from villages or other parts of the country to live with relatives or other adults in Accra.
Not every arrangement is harmful, but John Adu has encountered children who were brought to the city primarily to work, sometimes for adults outside their own family. Children between approximately six and fourteen may be expected to sell water, sweets, bags and other goods in busy markets, or undertake demanding household chores. If they cannot complete everything expected of them, they may face punishment, while the work itself keeps them away from the classroom and restricts their future opportunities.
For these children, the barrier to education is not simply the cost of a uniform or a set of exercise books. Their labour may also have become valuable to the adults around them. Nevertheless, HPA’s experience shows that when children are offered a genuinely free education, some can be released from this pattern and given the opportunity to learn.
Why High Priest Academy is still needed
Children who are mistreated may eventually run away, but leaving does not necessarily bring safety. John described children ending up in dangerous areas where they may be exposed to homelessness, drugs and exploitation. Some girls as young as ten are even drawn into prostitution.
This is not the experience of every child HPA encounters, but it shows the serious risks facing those who have no safe home, school or trusted adult to turn to. Regular attendance at HPA takes children away from unsafe work and places them among teachers who know them, care about their progress and want them to develop their abilities.
Although HPA is a private school, it does not operate like a typical fee-charging one. Pastor Samuel Amponsah established the school more than 20 years ago after recognising what was happening to vulnerable children in the community. Through HPA, Living Word of Faith Ministries provides free teaching, learning materials and a daily meal, giving children a realistic opportunity to enter school and remain there.
HPA also teaches pupils that they are known and valued by God. This Christian foundation enriches school life, although the immediate reason many children attend is practical. HPA offers an education they could not otherwise afford.
Reaching the next stage
High Priest Academy teaches children up to the end of junior high school. Pupils then sit the examinations needed to progress to public senior high school and benefit from Ghana’s Free Senior High School programme.
HPA aims for every final-year pupil to pass and progress. In recent years, every year group presented for the examination has achieved a 100 per cent pass rate.
Although the school does not provide senior high education, its interest in former pupils continues after they move on. In 2024 WorldShare helped provide practical packs for pupils preparing to move into senior boarding high school, ensuring they had the essential items needed for the transition including a mattress, pillow, cleaning materials, food and toilet tissue.
HPA has already seen former pupils progress through senior high school and into university. One began attending its crèche at just eighteen months old and is now studying computer science. HPA invites him back to speak to current pupils, helping future opportunities feel more real through the example of someone who began in the same classrooms.
Not every pupil will follow the same path, and education cannot remove every difficulty a child may face. It can, however, help children discover their abilities and pursue opportunities that might once have been unavailable to them, including careers in the police, immigration service or military.
That long-term difference is why John Adu can say:
“Some of the children without the school wouldn’t be where they are at the moment.”
HPA helps children move from work and vulnerability towards safety, learning and greater choice.
Standing alongside a locally led response
High Priest Academy currently educates 172 pupils despite having limited space and resources. It receives government oversight, but no direct government funding towards its everyday work.
WorldShare initially supported HPA through the 10:10 Project, helping the school provide resources including textbooks, nutritious meals and a computer classroom. HPA has since become part of WorldShare’s ChildAid programme, through which sponsors help provide education, meals and ongoing care for vulnerable children while strengthening the wider school community.
This support strengthens work that began within the community itself. The HPA team understands their community, knows the individual pupils and remains committed for the long term. WorldShare’s role is to stand alongside them, helping to provide the resources they need to continue.
Help create opportunities through education
For a child who might otherwise spend each day working, education can offer safety, regular food, caring relationships and a route towards opportunities that once seemed beyond reach.
Please pray for John Adu, Pastor Sam and the HPA team as they educate and care for vulnerable children. Pray that children at risk of exploitation will be given the opportunity to learn, and that every pupil will be able to progress as far as their abilities can take them.
Through WorldShare’s ChildAid programme, you can help provide the education, meals and ongoing care that make this possible. Meet the children at High Priest Academy who are currently waiting for a sponsor and discover how you could become part of their journey.
