The Family Preservation Programme – St. Nicolas/St. Joseph’s

The Family Preservation programme is a key programme of St Nicolas Home. This programme includes three related programmes early intervention programme, the re-unification programme and the foster care programme.

The Early Intervention Programme

The Early intervention service is based in the Western suburbs. The programme serves Westbury, Sophiatown, and the surrounds. This includes Bosmont, Coronationville, Newclare, Riverlea and Noordgesig, as well as three informal settlements in the area.

In these areas there are incidences of gang violence, substance abuse, abuse of woman and children as well as teenage pregnancy.
The children in the area are extremely vulnerable and the broader community and families living there require specialised intervention to strengthen them and improve their own ability to protect and care for their children. Some of the children in these areas have been orphaned or are soon to become orphans as their parents are infected by HIV/AIDS.

Primary Objectives of Early Intervention

• To intervene in family crisis that threatens the well being of children, to   stabilise the family care systems and prevent the institutionalisation of children.
• To provide training and awareness opportunities to empower community members to improve their own ability to meet the developmental needs of the children and youth.
• To provide poverty relief to families in crisis providing food parcels, blankets and other essentials. Food parcels also ensure that orphaned and vulnerable children receive nutritious and balanced meals.

Programme Implementation

Marketing, networking and partnerships

• The programme works closely with primary and secondary schools in Westbury and its surrounding communities, working principally with Life Orientation Teachers who assist us to identify orphaned and vulnerable children.
• The service is marketed on an ongoing basis to individuals, corporate companies and groups in the communities described above.
  Service level agreements have been signed with Johannesburg Child Welfare Society, Nicro, Wits Mental Health Society, Family Life Care and SANCA. A partnership has also been established with the University of Johannesburg.

Training

• Small groups are trained in the importance of preserving families, the early identification of families experiencing crises and the resources available in the community.
• Orphaned and vulnerable Children and youth are engaged in life skills programmes through outreach project and school projects.
• The training includes a variety of workshops and support group that help with the development of the skills to handle different categories of crises and situations.
• Social work and social auxiliary students are placed at our organisation for practical training, this involves supervision and mentorship by our social worker
• Parental skills training is offered to identified families in the community and to the parents of the children in our care.

Case Interventions

• Numerous cases are referred each year and the programme works with an average of 60 families each year.
• To stabilise the care of orphaned and vulnerable children, the intensive interventions and monitoring of cases need to be concluded within a period of six to eight months.
• The social worker, together with the community child and youth care worker work together in identifying the critical needs of the family.
• The whole family is engaged through consultation.

Group Work

Owing to the high volume of cases, a common need is identified by our database and group therapies are offered. The following group therapies have been done:

Child Bereavement Support Group
Twenty children (between the ages of 8 to 13) were provided with bereavement counselling to come to terms with their lost ones, whom they have lost due to HIV or other terminal illness.  Supportive work is done with care givers. The children met once a week over a period of six months, the children were equipped to deal with anger, sense of loss, and left the group, able to move on. One of the key features of this therapy is that each child developed their own memory box of the parent or parents they have lost.

Anti Suicide Support Group
This group comprised of 5 teenage girls who all attempted to commit suicide (aged 15 to 16). The group focused on problem solving, assertiveness and decision making skills. Positive focus on goal planning was done. Owing to the nature of the problems each of the members received intensive individual therapy, and counselling was also done with the families of the girls. In 1 case the teenage girl had to be removed from the family.

Mums with Substance Dependency Support Group
This group was formed in partnership with SANCA, the group s still continuing, but attendance is poor and erratic

Community Development

Child Protection Week
The child protection week awareness campaign is held annually from the last week in May till the first of June. Intensive networking is done with all the stakeholders who work with children and all the schools in the area. A series of workshops is done with the children to make them aware of the risks and where to go to for help. After the child protection week, there is an increase in children asking for assistance owing to children disclosing of their abuse.

The Leadership Group
A group is formed with about 20 youth each year who embark on leadership training with us, part of this training includes a camp. From this group, we identify youth to do peer counselling; at least 6 youth are then identified and trained further with basic counselling that they are able to do with their peers in school.

Awareness Campaigns
Are held at least once a year on the following topics:

• Dealing with domestic violence
• HIV and AIDS
• Accessing grants
• Information giving on other resources with the community.

Beneficiaries

• The programme assists 60 families per year.
• An additional 300 children are reached through life skills training, counselling in the communities and awareness programmes in schools.
• 20 teachers are trained within the community in managing the behaviour of orphaned and vulnerable children at school. Their behaviour is managed and if needed Coach admits the child to a special needs school or provides extensive counselling for the child.
• At any one time, there are five trained volunteers active in the programme.
• A total of 1 200 beneficiaries are targeted

Family Preservation – St. George’s Home

Owing to the success of the Family Preservation Programme at St. Nicolas/St. Joseph’s, this programme is being replicated in the Kempton Park and surrounding areas under St. George’s Home. It is still in its initial stages.. Work has thus far commenced with introduction to the programme at the schools surrounding the Life Campus Residential Programme. It has been received positively. The programme is aimed at children at risk within their families or communities.