Maranatha Siyakatala Child & Youth Care Centre is our primary project: a residential centre for up to 34 children, catering for young people receiving full time care.

 

About the centre

The centre is registered with the Department of Social Development (SA NPO: 248-323), where the aim is to give the children they care for the best opportunity to develop. They also look to explore opportunities for future training and higher education in safeguarding the future of all those at the centre, even after the age of 18. They focus on the key service delivery areas of therapeutic, developmental, recreational and caring.

Activities and programmes

Activities arranged for the children include dance lessons, cricket lessons, football training, music and singing tuition, drama classes, scouts, swimming lessons, and reading therapy. Children are also encouraged to take part in outreach initiatives to strengthen their own sense of generosity. All children receive counselling and they have internal educational, life skills, sports and devotions based programmes. It is a full-time home for children who have all endured extreme abuse and trauma, many having spent time living or working on the street having fled their circumstances. They operate 365 days a year with children at the centre over all school holiday periods.

Education pathways

The children attend various schools and educational establishments throughout Port Elizabeth / Gqeberha including those for children with specific learning disabilities requiring specialised support and more vocational led pathways. The project continues to have numerous successes with their approach to residential care. The General Manager of the project is Dr Trudi Basson who continues to oversee the organisation that she founded 20 years ago. The organisation also has a farm area, vegetable tunnels project and poultry breeding with plans to branch out into the rural areas with a view of targeting communities that have very limited access to resources.