school,” he says. “The urban development centres aim to create an education-friendly environment in the communities and change their cultural mindset towards the children,” says SOHAY’s programme manager, Mohammed Abdullah al-Mamun. SOHAY also runs sessions for parents and employers to discourage child labour and offers skills training to increase family income. “Getting working children into formal education is really very challenging,” says Mamun. “Their psychological and physical condition is not like other children in society. After they leave work, they sometimes find it difficult to make friends and adapt to school. It is also very challenging to ensure they stay in school – the dropout rate is very high for these children. In this context, it’s important to work with schools so they have more sensitivity and care about them.” Seven-year-old Zhorna Akter Sumayya has two older brothers, both of whom are in work (one at a restaurant, one at a local club). But, after being introduced to education at one of SOHAY’s centres, she now goes to a state primary school. Her family live in the slum and her parents can’t survive without the income their sons bring home. Her father works in a rickshaw garage and her mother is a domestic worker, but they were keen for their daughter to go to school. In 2015, SOHAY helped 1,540 children to leave hazardous