A public school for mentally handicapped children in Ol Jororok Constituency has appealed to well-wishers for assistance in improving its infrastructure to meet the growing demand for admission of pupils with special needs in Nyandarua West Sub County.
According to the head teacher Monica Muraya, Gatimu Special School which currently enrolls 60 children aims to increase its capacity to over 100 but requires additional facilities, including a dormitory, classrooms, and a kitchen.
The school is the only facility for mentally challenged children in Nyandarua West Sub County.
Established in 2003, it operated as a unit within Gatimu Primary School until recently, when the primary school required the classrooms to accommodate the upcoming Grade Nine learners in January.
Currently, the pupils study in a seven-year-old unfinished building initially intended as a dormitory.
“The government has partly addressed the issue of lack of teachers by posting seven teachers to the school but lack of infrastructure like classrooms hinder admission of more pupils. This causes many children with special needs to remain at home,” the head teacher said.
The school admits children with autism, mental disabilities, and cerebral palsy.
However, the absence of boarding facilities limits access for children from distant areas within the vast sub-county.
Gatimu Special School also faces challenges with basic amenities such as piped water connection, despite neighboring Gatimu Primary and Gatimu Girls Secondary schools benefiting from a solar-powered borehole.
“Recently we had children from Passenga and Gathanji areas who were seeking admission but we could not take them in due to lack dormitory,” the head teacher said.
The school’s feeding depends on well-wishers since many of the children come from poor backgrounds and don’t bring meals from home.
Gatimu special school is surrounded by middle-class homes and a large-scale flower farm, Subati Flowers, with a petrol station and restaurant nearby.
Located just one kilometer off the Nyahururu-Ol Kalou highway, the school is accessible from both Nyahururu town, 4 kilometers away, and Ol Jororok town, 8 kilometers away.
Despite its proximity to Nyahururu Airstrip, the school continues to struggle without proper facilities, limiting the opportunities for special needs children in the region.
