In Brief 
- Founded in 1961 by two missionaries from Dorset, England, Tom and Barbara Pratten, Albella began as an effort to bring medical assistance and the Christian message to fleeing Tibetans. Today it is a residential Christian Home for 107 boys, located in the extreme north east of India, in the foothills of the Himalayas.
- Albella's vision is to provide a deliberately Christian upbringing and education for orphaned or very poor boys in the region. Most are aged 6 to 17 and Nepali or Tibetan.
- Daily life very much involves Christian input: "Prayers" happen morning and evening; boys also attend the Sunday Service in the local evangelical church. Many go on to be baptised as committed Christians.
- Younger boys attend Albella's free primary school, Bonami, together with an additional 100+ local day-scholars. Albella also pays for the secondary schooling of its own boys. Some 25 older teenage boys attend the Vocational Training Centre for education in plumbing, carpentry and electrics.
- Day-to-day responsibility for Albella is in the hands of Principal Heshron Rahmi, (himself a childhood resident of Albella) and his wife Dr. Ebi Rahmi, together with a committed local team of workers.
- An Indian Managing Committee further oversees operations on the ground. Albella is financed completely on a faith basis, mainly through support encouraged by the Albella UK Committee, which this year will send out some GB£18,000 in sponsorship and donations. No member of the Committee claims expenses, and accounts are officially audited. Indian accounts are doubly audited. Administrative costs in 2006-07 amounted to only 0.36% of total income.
- Each residential boy at Albella is sponsored, and new sponsors are always needed and very welcome. A gift of GB£12.50 per month (GB£0.41 per day!) provides enough for each boy. We encourage support through Gift Aid.
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