ABOUT US
All of the Centre’s work is made possible by the huge generosity of its donors who enable this life changing work to continue and grow. The gratitude of everyone involved with the work of the Rainbow Centre is infinite.
The Rainbow Centre Sri Lanka is a UK-registered charity, run by a small team of unpaid trustees and volunteers, who are dedicated to ensuring that administration costs in the UK are minimised and that all donations benefit the Rainbow Centre children and their families in Sri Lanka to the maximum extent possible. The Rainbow Centre Sri Lanka supervises and finances the operations of the Rainbow Centre in Sri Lanka. Alison Nagle, the Centre’s founder, chairperson and trustee of the charity, is in daily contact with the Centre
In Sri Lanka, the Rainbow Centre is registered as a non-governmental organisation and operates government approved and registered pre-school and daycare facilities. Its activities are overseen by a team of highly experienced local and foreign trustees and advisors.
The Centre’s day-to-day operations are managed by its local employees which include: its CEO, Shevi Balasuria; a welfare manager; four day carers for toddlers and infants; a team of 23 full-time and part-time teachers covering 11 O level subjects for students who are in mainstream school in the morning; an accountant; an administrator who manages the daily functions of the school, timetables and teachers; two cooks and two helpers who cater for 240 people a day; cleaners, including a small team of mothers in crisis; two drivers, who meet all the many bus and tuk-tuk transportation needs; a maintenance worker; and, a purchasing supervisor to ensure the safe delivery and storage of supplies. The Rainbow Centre and its children are protected by 24-hour professional security staff.
In Sri Lanka, the Rainbow Centre’s accounts are reviewed and audited by EY Sri Lanka. The Rainbow Centre Sri Lanka’s UK accounts are subject to an independent examiner’s report by the audit firm Mercer and Hole and are filed with the UK Charity Commission.
WHO WE ARE
Alison Nagle
Alison is the Founder of the Rainbow Centre and Chair of its Boards of Trustees in the UK and Sri Lanka. Based in London, Alison visits Sri Lanka regularly and oversees and directs the Rainbow Centre’s work receiving daily progress reports. Working closely with the CEO, she is also responsible for planning and implementing the immediate and long-term direction of the Centre’s work. An Oxford graduate, Alison previously had an international, award-winning career in journalism, specialising in human rights issues in Asia. She says the Rainbow Centre is the happiest place she knows.
Alasdair Nagle
Alasdair is a UK trustee. He is a Chartered Accountant in the UK, and recently retired from a career in accounting and investment banking primarily in Asia with PwC, CDC, HSBC and Headland Capital Partners. He oversees the Rainbow Centre’s finances and regulatory reporting in the UK.
Ajanta Hilton
Ajanta is the UK Director and a UK and Sri Lankan Trustee. Ajanta is a Chartered Accountant, and currently an elected district councillor based in the UK. She assists in a wide range of the Rainbow Centre’s operations including monitoring the work of professional accountants in Sri Lanka; ensuring the transparency and accuracy of accounting reports; arranging and reporting on trustee meetings; and, providing regular news and social media updates. Ajanta helps arrange school visits to the Rainbow Centre, which are said by students to be the highlight of their trip to Sri Lanka. Ajanta’s grandparents were Sri Lankan educationalists and a great inspiration to her.
Shevi Balasuria
Shevi is the CEO of the Rainbow Centre in Sri Lanka. She has over 30 years’ experience in management and education having worked with local and international organisations utilising her management experience. Working with Alison, Shevi has restructured the Centre’s operations to address the needs of its students and families.Shevi supervises every area of the running of the Rainbow Centre.
Shevi is guided by current international innovations which have been shown to improve educational outcomes. Shevi has made fundamental improvements to every aspect of the Centre’s work including: close observation of the teaching of the children; ensuring that teaching employs Montessori, child centric and play/activity-based methods, with emphasis on creativity and action-based learning; and, ensuring that the teachers and staff are recruited, trained and motivated to work efficiently and effectively.
Overall, Shevi has maintained continuous development and growth in all areas at the Centre. She reports on a daily basis to the UK trustees and regularly discusses issues with the Centre’s founder and chair, Alison Nagle. Locally, she has ensured that the Rainbow Centre enjoys an excellent reputation amongst all the relevant local government authorities and is highly respected.
Since her taking over as CEO in 2020 Shevi has launched the following transformational initiatives: introducing the Sound Mind and Body programme, on sex education, body safety, good touch, bad touch and cyber bullying; establishment of the slow Learners Programme; creation of the English and Drama Clubs; the setting up of the Saturday School programme; restructuring of the Welfare Department; the appointment of Prefects as part of School Captains Programme; providing a more global and creative learning module, using technology by encouraging children’s creativity and involvement through activities and play; setting up of the House sports teams; and the introduction and encouragement of the use of IT technology in both teaching and learning.
Randhima Devin
The appointment of Randhima Devindi in 2020 led to the outstanding success of the welfare department’s work. Providing education is just one part of the Rainbow Centre’s work. The rest includes a broad range of service provision to families in crisis. Every child at the Centre experiences neglect. Most of the children’s families are unable to take adequate care of their children.
Randhima, who started out working a seven day a week and on call 24 hours a day, has overseen the expansion of her team to meet the needs of 200 students. Her approach of developing positive relationships with carers and parents has led to the gaining of insight into the root causes of poor concentration, learning difficulties, mental illness, extreme suffering and abusive behaviour suffered by the Centre’s children. The fact that the Rainbow Centre has expanded its scope to offer comprehensive support not just to the children but to their entire family has been a key to the department’s success.
Randhima oversees all aspects of welfare provision. She is assisted by the Centre’s in-house counsellor. All welfare work is overseen by an eminent Colombo based child psychologist, Niluka Wickremasinghe, who has worked in this field for 20 years and visits the Centre frequently.
Cordelia Nagle
Cordelia volunteers as an Operations Assistant for the charity, supporting the team in the UK. She grew up alongside the children at the Rainbow Centre ever since it was set up in 2004. She spent her school holidays volunteering there; teaching English, art, yoga and meditation and building life-long bonds with many of the students. She has a great insight into the experience of children and their needs. She is one of the children’s favourite Rainbow team members. Her excellent communication skills are a great asset with the students. Having completed a master’s degree, Cordelia lives in London and works in the charity sector.