Lettie Stuart Pottery Centre

In 2016, through our Sweet Salone project, we discovered a small pottery centre in Waterloo, just outside Freetown. At the time, only two potters were involved with the centre, and the once-promising facility was in poor condition. The equipment was old, the kiln was deteriorating, and the centre had very limited capacity to produce ceramics.

Yet there was something special about the place. The potters had strong skills, Sierra Leone has an abundant supply of natural clay, and there was clear potential to develop pottery into both a viable livelihood and a professional training opportunity for young people.

We were immediately interested in working with the potters, and in 2017 we began connecting them with Icelandic designers to develop products for our Sweet Salone project. The collaboration worked well, but it also made one thing clear: if the partnership was to grow, the pottery centre itself needed to be rebuilt, and its production capacity significantly increased.

Rebuilding the centre
In 2018, Aurora and the Sierra Leone Adult Education Association (SLADEA), which owns the centre, began a joint project to restore the facility and establish a sustainable pottery school and production centre.

Aurora financed the refurbishment of the centre, including a solar power system, equipment and improvements to the production facilities. We also supported an 18-month professional training programme for young people who wanted to become potters. International pottery specialists were brought in to help develop the curriculum, improve production techniques and product quality, and strengthen the skills of both the students and existing potters. A new kiln was also built, allowing the centre to increase both the quality and volume of its production.

A key part of this development has been the long-standing collaboration between Mohamed A. Sesay, one of the original potters trained at the centre, and Icelandic ceramicist Guðbjörg Káradóttir. Guðbjörg first travelled to Sierra Leone in 2018 to support Aurora´s work with LSP and returned annually until 2025. Working closely together, Mohamed and Guðbjörg have developed production techniques, improved the quality and consistency of the ceramics, supported the training of new potters and helped shape the centre into what it is today. Their collaboration has been an important part of LSP's development and growth.

The initial project demonstrated that the centre had real potential, but further investment was needed. With additional support from the Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Aurora and SLADEA continued developing the centre. A second 18-month training programme was conducted, research was carried out on locally available clay, the solar system was expanded, and additional equipment was acquired.

Today, Lettie Stuart Pottery has grown into a thriving production and training centre. It provides employment for local artisans and produces a growing range of handmade ceramics from locally sourced clay. The centre supplies ceramics for Aurora’s Sweet Salone collection while also developing and selling its own Lettie Stuart Pottery collection.

The pottery has also become a creative space for the wider community. Weekend workshops give people the opportunity to sit at the wheel, work with clay and learn directly from the potters. The workshops have become increasingly popular and provide an additional source of income for the centre.

Perhaps the most important achievement is that LSP is now financially sustainable. Aurora remains involved through the board and continues to support the management and development of the centre together with SLADEA. A major milestone came in 2025–2026, when LSP made its first significant equipment investment entirely from its own resources, purchasing and importing an electric pottery wheel. The new wheel has substantially increased productivity and is a tangible sign of how far the centre has come.

From a forgotten pottery centre to a new generation of potters

The story of Lettie Stuart Pottery began long before Aurora became involved.

In the 1990s, SLADEA developed the idea of establishing a non-profit pottery training and production centre as an alternative career path for young people. Sierra Leone has a long tradition of pottery, natural clay is widely available, and the country faced, and continues to face, significant challenges in creating employment and practical training opportunities for young people.

The initiative was severely disrupted by Sierra Leone’s eleven-year civil war. By the end of the war in 2002, the original centre had been destroyed. SLADEA nevertheless remained committed to reviving the idea.

In 2005, a feasibility study supported by German partners and UNDP concluded that there was a strong basis for establishing a professional pottery and ceramics training and production centre. The facility was rebuilt and training was provided to 20 young people. The three-year programme eventually produced only four graduates, largely because students could not afford to remain in training for such a long period without financial support.

Among those who completed the training were Brima Koroma and Mohamed A. Sesay. They continued working at the center after the initial support ended, but without a sustainable business model or the resources needed to maintain the facility, it gradually fell into disrepair. Brima who has since passed away, was part of the small team that kept the centre going during these difficult years.

When Aurora discovered the centre back in 2016, we saw both the challenges and the potential. What was needed was investment, training and the right conditions for the potters to build a viable business.

Lettie Stuart Pottery is named after Dr. Lettie Stuart, one of the founders of SLADEA and its first female president.