About Us
Making the world a better place
for all of us.
About Us
Making the world a better place
for all of us.
About Us
Making the world a better place
for all of us.
Our mission
To give children from impoverished communities the chance of the quality education they deserve, so they can dream of a better future – not just for themselves, but for the whole of South Africa.
Our team
Board members
Born in the UK to a South African parent, Sally gained a BSc at Oxford Brookes University. After graduating, she emigrated to South Africa where she and her partner founded Tractor Media.
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Once established, Sally took leave out of the workplace to raise her four children and during this time she and her husband decided to sponsor the education of a young boy from Khayelitsha. It was from this experience that Sally realized the great inequity of education in South Africa. To help address this Sally sought the experience of her mother, Sharon Scudamore, who had twenty years of working in the NGO sector.
They founded Bright Start together in 2008 with the objective to create better education opportunities for deserving children from poor communities. Sally is passionate about helping children achieve their dreams and the longer-term empowerment of South Africa. Sally and Sharon still work together, serving on the board of Bright Start along with a diverse group of invested board members.
Sharon grew up in South Africa and was educated in Pretoria. After marrying an Englishman, Geoff, Sharon spent thirty years in the UK as a mum of two children, a small-scale farmer and business owner.
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Once her children had left home to further their studies, Sharon returned home to South Africa to ‘make a difference’ and to be around for her elderly parents. Since her return to South Africa in 1996, Sharon has spent twenty years in NGOs in Khayelitsha and Hout Bay.
She is a co-founder of Bright Start and has volunteered her time developing the organisation and actively participating as a board member since its inception in 2008. Recently, Sharon was pivotal in the formation of a UK charity whose focus is education sponsorship in South Africa.
Sarah has been a dedicated member of the Bright Start community since 2014, initially working with young children in Grade 0 and 1, helping to prepare them for the transition to school. Over the years, she has expanded her role, providing essential support to primary school students, particularly in maths.
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In 2024, Sarah took on a new responsibility as a member of our board, where she has played a key role in the success of our tutor program at Kronendal Primary.
Sarah holds a B Ed Hons in Learner Support and continues to teach and tutor Bright Start children. Outside of her professional life, she is a proud mother to two grown sons and lives with her husband in Cape Town. Sarah’s commitment to education and learner support has made a lasting impact on both the children she teaches and the community at large.
George is a CA (SA), BCom Hons (Taxation), CFP and is employed as a corporate tax advisor at Momentum Metropolitan Holdings – a company listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange – where he advises on tax matters for the financial services group.
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He served for six years as Treasurer on the School Governing Body of Kronendal Primary School in Hout Bay while his son was attending the school. During this time, he came to serve on the Bright Start Board after being approached with regard to beneficiaries that were attending the school. He remains passionate about the financial sustainability of these gems of education and the importance of education to provide a head start in life. He re-joined the Bright Start Board in 2020 – the year his son completed schooling.
Outside of the professional environment, George enjoys the outdoors and can be found trail running, kayaking, hiking, mountain biking or just generally being out and about with friends and family.
Goodwill Moyo has been a member of the Bright Start Board since 2014.
Goodwill was born and grew up in Johannesburg where he was lucky enough to be awarded a bursary at Saint Stithians College. His blessing of receiving a quality education was one of the drivers behind him serving on the Bright Start Board.
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He believes that everything he has achieved in his life is the result of the good education he was privileged to receive.
Goodwill left Cape Town six years ago to relocate back to Johannesburg. He remains involved with Bright Start as much as possible and is proud to see the youngsters who he has had a hand in mentoring, growing into wonderful young people.
Brandon is the father of Tristan who is on the Bright Start programme. He works for a Dstv company in Hout Bay and is an active member of his local church where he assists the congregation Rector in his ministerial duties. Brandon is the Sunday School congregation co-ordinator, Confirmation teacher and congregation Covid co-ordinator.
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Brandon is a strong advocate of Bright Start. Having grown up in the Hangberg community of Hout Bay without a father and with five brothers, he recognises how Bright Start helps provide greater opportunities to children in his community – opportunities he could only dream of as a child himself.
Jill grew up in Cambridgeshire (UK) and gained a Bachelor Degree in Education. After teaching for twenty years in both private and state primary schools in the UK, she moved with her husband and two daughters to Hout Bay. In South Africa, Jill taught art at Greenfield Girls Primary school.
Staff members
Virginia was born in France and spent her early childhood in Strasbourg before relocating to Montreal, Canada, where she completed most of her formal education. A dedicated mother of three, Virginia’s academic journey began with a degree in Anthropology, driven by her passion for understanding global cultures and societies.
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Following her studies, she traveled extensively across Africa, further enriching her knowledge of diverse cultures.
In 1996, Virginia pivoted to Graphic Design, earning her qualification from Marsan College in Montreal. She went on to work with prestigious design agencies in Paris, Johannesburg, and Cape Town, contributing to projects for prominent global brands. After several years in the design industry, Virginia chose to focus on her family, stepping away from her design career. She became a pre-primary school educator and subsequently opened and operated her own preschool for 14 years.
Currently, Virginia serves as the Program Manager at Bright Start, a position she has held since August 2021, where she applies her extensive experience in education and management to drive impactful initiatives in early childhood development, as well as educational support for Primary and High school students.Â
Johann Julies is a husband, father of two boys and has been a valuable staff member of Bright Start since 2015. Born in Darling in the Swartland district, Johann graduated from Atlantis Senior Secondary high school and went on to work in a textile factory for ten years, seven of which he was a supervisor.
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After his company closed its doors in 2003 due to the cheap imports of material from China, he moved to Hout Bay. It was then that he was offered the opportunity to become a qualified driving instructor and for seven years worked for a local driving school.
Since 2015, Johann has been Bright Start’s admin clerk and driver. He keeps the children safe, and ensures they are always on time and where they need to be, whether that is at school, after school activities or health appointments. It is quite some feat.
Trinity was born and grew up in Hout Bay, the same area where the Bright Start office is located. She completed high school with Cambridge certificates, earning straight A’s and A+’s in her IGCSE exams.
A dedicated and hard-working individual, Trinity began working at 14 to earn pocket money and has consistently held jobs since 16.
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Her passion for tutoring started when she was 18, and she also developed a strong interest in working with computers, particularly with Microsoft programs like Excel, where she enjoys creating codes and designing tables to display information effectively.
Trinity has partially completed a BCom degree, gaining valuable experience in financial accounting, and bookkeeping, and demonstrating strong mathematical skills. Since October 2024, she has worked in administration and as a tutor at Bright Start, where she applies her diverse skill set to support the organization’s goals.
Our partner
Bright Start has been selected as a partner charity of Sawabona-Africa in Germany.
Sawabona-Africa fundraises on behalf of charities that improve the lives of children in South Africa.
All their partner charities have been approved for accountability and transparency.
Please click on the link to read more about Sawabona-Africa and if you would like to donate to Bright Start in euros.
100% of donations received will be transferred to Bright Start.
If you live in Germany, you can donate in euros and receive a German Tax Certificate.
Bright Start has been selected as a partner charity of Sawabona-Africa in Germany. Sawabona-Africa fundraises on behalf of charities that improve the lives of children in South Africa. All their partner charities have been approved for accountability and transparency. Please click on the link to read more about Sawabona-Africa and if you would like to donate to Bright Start in euros. 100% of donations received will be transferred to Bright Start. If you live in Germany, you can donate in euros and receive a German Tax Certificate.
Our financials
Financial Statement
2019
Financial Statement
2018
We’re an open book
Income model
Expenditure model
Corporate & private donations
Parent contributions
Interest
Education support programme
Remuneration
Rental & administration
Transport
Where the money comes from
Where the money goes
Income model
Corporate & private donations
Parent contributions
Interest
Where the money comes from
Expenditure model
Education support programme
Remuneration
Rental & administration
Transport
Where the money goes
How we are doing
- 75% of our learners achieve over 60% average (derived from year end reports 2020)
- 100% matric pass rate
- Our children are happy, fulfilled, challenged and busy!
- More and more schools are joining our programme
- We have an excellent relationship with all our sponsors and partners
- Our parents are thriving too!
How do we know?
- We monitor our outcomes through quarterly reports, quarterly mentoring sessions with our children, parents and teachers
- We hold regular focus group discussions and capture information and feedback through questionnaires
- We communicate with sponsors and encourage our children to share their experiences
How do we know?
- We monitor our outcomes through quarterly reports, quarterly mentoring sessions with our children, parents and teachers
- We hold regular focus group discussions and capture information and feedback through questionnaires
- We communicate with sponsors and encourage our children to share their experiences
Get in touch
Bright Start gives children in South Africa access to
the quality education they deserve.
Bright Start gives children in South Africa access to the quality education they deserve.