site.bta5,000-Plus Children Enrolled in 42 Bulgarian Sunday Schools in UK

Bulgaria's Education and Science Ministry assists 42 Bulgarian Sunday schools in Britain with a total enrollment of over 5,000.

This transpired during a visit by Education and Science Minister Galin Tsokov to the Ivan Stancioff Bulgarian School at Bulgaria's Embassy in London, Tsokov's Ministry said in a press release on Wednesday.

Addressing the teachers and management of the school, Tsokov suggested that the experience of the British educational system should be tapped as well.

Tsokov and Bulgaria’s Ambassador in London Marin Raykov met with representatives of Bulgarian schools in the UK, at which the Minister said that a separate module for Bulgarian Sunday schools will be available in his Ministry's Bulgaria - Educational Routes National Programme in 2024. This will enable more Bulgarian children to visit historical landmarks in the country and will strengthen their link with Bulgaria, Tsokov commented.

Raykov said that the Sunday schools are more important than ever because of the growing Bulgarian diaspora.

The Minister was formally invited to attend a forthcoming Forum of Bulgarian Schools Abroad with the participation of lecturers from the St Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia and Cambridge University. The Forum is organized with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science.

The Ivan Stancioff Bulgarian School was established in 1987, closed down in 1991, and reopened later that year. During the current school year, 192 first- to eighth-graders attend classes in Bulgarian language and clubs in folk songs and dances, traditions, theatre and cinema, environment and civics education.