The AfterCare Reading Club

Transcription

1 NET VIR PRET Progress Report July 2016 The AfterCare Reading Club The six months under review have seen a further extension to our building, the acquisition of a mini-bus and the introduction of exciting new activities. The period has also brought much-appreciated acknowledgment of our achievements from several quarters, as will be seen below. MINISTERIAL AWARD We are deeply honoured to report that our work has gained provincial recognition in the form of a Silver Ministerial Award for Youth Excellence. The award was presented at a ceremony at the Cape Town City Hall on 20 June 2016 by Social Development MEC Albert Fritz. It carried a cheque for R sponsored by the Community Chest and also funding for N4 training for staff in Financial Management and Project Development sponsored by ABSA Bank. OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS: VRYHEID S LIED Born out of last year s research into Cape Slavery, our play, Vryheid s Lied, traced the journey to freedom of a Malagasy teenager who had been sold into slavery at the Cape. The play had a cast of 17 and won the best play award at Overberg Drama Festival last year. It was then invited to participate in the Zabalaza Festival at Cape Town s Baxter Theatre in March of this year with 1 In performance at ArtsCape

2 20 other productions from around the province. There it was one of four selected to play at the Suidooster Festival at the ArtsCape State Theatre in April where it received the award for Best Ensemble and was the only performance to receive a standing ovation. RIEL DANCE TROPHIES Net vir Pret is now training over 100 participants in 13 different Riel Dance groups, 3 at our centre, and the other 10 on isolated surrounding farms, Akkerboom, Vleiplaas, Lemoenshoek, Buffelsjags and Mullersrus. All traveled to Laingsburg in June to take part in the ATKV Riel Festival where they were awarded no less than four trophies. They came first in both the Under 18 and Under 12 categories and were awarded a trophy for the Best Song. Our Conwill Benn was judged the Best Dancer in the Under 18 group. NEW DEVELOPMENTS: BUILDING EXTENSION Thanks to the support of UK businessman Gordon Browning, we were able to add a further extension to our building in February, providing a new kitchen, a new studio for the Craft Workshop and a Recording Studio for the Jazz Workshop. Thank you Gordon! ACQUISITION OF A MINI-BUS We have at last managed to acquire ownership of a 16-seater Nissan mini-bus. This came about through assistance from the ELMA Foundation, the kindness of Michael Chanarin and Brian Wides, whose support has extended over many years, and also the 2

3 generosity of Detlef Klapthor. To all our deepest thanks. The bus has made a huge difference to our work, enabling us to undertake excursions which would otherwise not have been possible and is also helping us to bring youngsters from the farms in to our centre in Barrydale. NEW PROGRAMMES PROJECT HOPE For about a year there have been disturbing reports of a group of under-age school drop-outs who have occasionally broken into homes in the village, although it seems sometimes only stealing food. There has been a growing uneasiness about the situation and frequent calls for something to be done. Matters came to a head when villagers called a public meeting and asked the head of the local SAPS cluster to be present. Nothing much emerged, except for the police asking people to be more careful in securing their properties. Net vir Pret has some expertise in the field. For a few years we ran occasional weekend Diversion Camps at our farmhouse for youngsters referred by the courts after their first brush with the law and we decided to try a weekend camp with the youngsters and see if anything came of it. The police provided the names of 11 boys, all between the ages of 11 and 14. We appealed for any form of assistance on the village bulletin board and this brought Heidi and Peter Lund to us, both newcomers to the village. They ran a session on the Saturday afternoon where the boys drew colourful mandalas on paper plates and then put these up on the wall. One boy wrote an inscription around the edge of his plate which read Pray for a better life. The success of the weekend encouraged us to take things further and we invited the group to join the Bike Club, meeting every weekday afternoon, where they learn to repair bikes before going on supervised rides. 3

4 Heidi and Peter are coming on two mornings a week where they play educational games with the boys and they visit the Barrydale Library once a week where librarian Rina de Villiers reads to them. We took them on an excursion to Swellendam where they were able to choose shoes and a hoodie top as gifts before being treated to a burger at the Wimpy. There has only been one drop-out and 10 of the youngsters are still with us two months later. Our concern now is how to take Project Hope further. The boys all dropped out of school in Grade 2 and their literacy and numeracy skills are minimal. It is clear that they will never go back to school and that an alternative has to be planned for them. They all come from very poor, problematic homes. An ad hoc committee has formed to work on the problem with staff, Heidi and Peter serving as well as the local police officer who carries the youth portfolio and the AKVV social worker. Our iniitial thoughts are to create a daily programme which provides basic literacy and numeracy on weekday mornings and then to proceed to some form of vocational training later. We visited the Graham Beck Skills Centre in Robertson where Director, Myra Hoffman generously gave of her time and provided many leads. PARENTING WORKSHOP While young mothers in Barrydale do have access to the local clinic for health matters, they are not always aware that the capacities which shape us are established in the first few years of life. We are attempting to address this issue through a weekly workshop for young mothers and their children (under 5 s) in a developmental and creative way. The weekly workshop started in February and is progressing well. Six mothers attend on Thursday mornings from 11h00 to 12h30 with their child. A developmental checklist is employed to assess the level of each child and appropriate activities are in place each week aimed at cognitive development. Over refreshments at the end of the session, discussion takes place on health and nutrition issues, clinic visits, vaccinations. 4

5 OTHER PROGRAMMES The Aftercare Programme continues to run smoothly on weekdays from 14h00 to 17h00 with up to 50 youngsters crowding in to enjoy structured educational and developmental activities. Activities for teenagers have grown to include the following: a Pottery Studio (Mon & Wed 14h30-17h30) a Craft Workshop (Thurs & Fri 14h30-17h00) a Jazz Studio (Tues, Wed, Thurs, Fri 14h30-17h00) a Drumming Class (Wed 16h00-17h00) 3 Riel Dance Groups (Tues, Wed & Thurs 16h00-17h00) a Biking Club (Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs 14h30-17h00) a Homework Club (Mon-Fri 16h00-18h00) a Young Leaders Club (Fri 16h00-18h00) 21 participants ADDO EXCURSION Work began early on preparations for this year s December Day of Reconciliation Parade. The theme will concern elephants and their place in our world and inspiration is being drawn from The Elephant Whisperer by the late Lawrence Anthony. 5

6 The event is run in partnership with the Handspring Trust and UWC s Centre for Humanities Research and Handspring sponsored a 3-day trip to the Addo Elephant Park for 16 of our staff and Young Leaders. The excursion was a life-time experience and helped to prepare everyone for the task ahead. There is a strong possibility that the show may travel to Dubai for performance there at the end of the year. HOLIDAY SCHOOLS The Easter Holiday School ran for a week in early April and was attended by 87 youngsters. Activities were sportoriented. The Winter Holiday School ran in three sessions each a week long. In all three sessions, activities centred around elephants in an attempt to prepare youngsters for the end-of-year event. Children drew elephants, made clay and fabric elephants as well as cardboard elephant cut-outs and then, in groups, had to devise a story involving elephants which they then scripted and performed on the final day. The first week was held at the BF Oosthuizen Primary School in Barrydale and 76 children attended. In the second week, the Holiday School moved to the Vleiplaas Farm School where 56 youngsters joined in. In the third week 20 teenagers from the Akkerboom Farm School were invited to spend 5 days at our Farmhouse. 6

7 INTERNS A new batch of 5 Interns came on board in February Apart from general duties in Net vir Pret s regular programmes, they have taken on two special projects. The first of these has been to undertake in-depth research on elephants and their place in the world in preparation for the Winter Holiday School and the end-ofyear Parade. Interns, Dr. Rice and Clinic Supervisor Suster John with their newspaper The second project is to research Teenage Pregnancy and the issues surrounding it. They were tasked with reading up on the theme and then with conducting interviews with a wide range of people including young mothers (and fathers), parents, grandparents, teachers, religious leaders, clinic personnel and recording their opinions. This information was collated and a community wall newspaper was constructed under the guidance of Dr. Michael Rice of the PETS Foundation and displayed at the Barrydale Clinic and also at the local schools. In a further development of the theme, the Interns have scripted and rehearsed a play, Hoe Nou?, under direction of veteran actor Jeroen Kranenburg. Theo Nel of the Karoo Art Hotel kindly provided the hotel s Belanti Room for rehearsals and the premiére took place there on 30 July. Hoe Nou? will now tour schools in the Province in August. THE PETS PROGRAMME The PETS workshop programme for teachers at schools in Barrydale and on the surrounding farm schools is now in its fourth year. Under the leadership of educationist Dr. Michael Rice with Mary Debrick writing the material and Riekie Harm undertaking the translation, the programme has produced an inter-active on-line course dealing with Fractions and Decimals, created with teachers for teachers; all the course materials have been tested in the classroom and translated with the teachers into Afrikaans. In 2016 the programme changed its focus to Percentages and, in response to a request from participating teachers, has moved on in mid-year to work on Basic Operations. 7

8 OTHER NEWS Damian Samuels from UWC s Centre for Humanities Research has released the trailer of his film of last year s December parade. This can be viewed at Judy Brown, Director of EDSA (Education for Democracy in South Africa), the Oxford voluntary group who were instrumental in setting up Net vir Pret and who have supported us since the beginning, came on her annual visit, spending 5 weeks with us and helping in many invaluable ways. She was accompanied by her husband, Prof. Gary Lock, who is an EDSA trustee and who helped with getting the Bike Programme off the ground, and also by Linda Richards, on her second visit to work with us, and Judy s daughter, sports teacher Sarah Brown, who spent her time advising our sports co-odinator on improvements to his programme. She also ran a training session for the Barrydale Rugby Club, much to their amazement. Net vir Pret co-founder and EDSA chair, Ann Harries Brown, visited briefly in April and we appreciated the opportunity to show her the new developments. On 16 April young Net vir Pret musicians attended a workshop with celebrated guitar maestro Derek Gripper. The event, held in Montagu and sponsored by SAConcerts, brought together young musicians from Barrydale, Montagu and Bonnievale and was a wonderful learning experience for all. Net vir Pret Director Peter Takelo attended a three-day workshop sponsored by the ELMA Foundation on working with children with disabilities. Barrydale resident Lawrie Mabin very kindly helped us launch a much needed brochure and printed copies for us at no cost. Gregory Manley and Catherine Gowl who toured the US production of War Horse spent time playing new ganes with children at Net vir Pret and also at Lemoenshoek Farm School. MATRIC OUTREACH PROGRAMME The Matric Outreach Programme aims at advising students in their final school year on matters relating to further study, including choice of course and institution, application and registration procedures and financial aid. The following 2015 matriculants are now registered at tertiary institutions as a result of our endeavours. 8

9 New tertiary enrolments Braaf, Sonja Univ. Western Cape B Soc Sc 2. Du Toit, Christiaan Northlink, Tygerberg Nat. Dipl.Marketing 3. Dyanti, Brandon Northlink, Tygerberg Nat. Dipl.Financial Management 4. Esau, William Univ. Western Cape BA 5. Hendricks, Romano Northlink, Tygerberg Nat. Dipl.Marketing 6. Nel, Patrick Northlink, Tygerberg Nat. Dipl.Management 7. Pieterse, Sheryldine Northlink, Tygerberg Nat. Dipl.Tourism 8. Syster, Jeraldo Northlink, Bellville Nat. Dipl. Civil Engineering 9. Van Rooi, Henrico Northlink, Tygerberg Nat. Dipl. Human Resources 10. Windvogel, Tay-Lea Univ. Western Cape BA They join a growing list of young people from Barrydale studying at tertiary level, all of whom were counselled by us. Continuing enrolments Britz, Charleen B Ed 2 CPUT* 12. du Toit, Davina Nat. Dipl. Management 2 West Coast College 13. Ernest, Simonia B Ed 2 CPUT* 14. Jooste, Mickhyle B Com 3 Univ. of the Western Cape 15. Joubert, Fiogen B Tech (Tourism) 3 CPUT* 16. Koppies, Nuroshaan Nat. Dipl. Management 2 West Coast College 17. Michaels, Shayne B Ed 4 Univ. of the Western Cape 18. Moses, Clarence B Admin 3 Univ of the Free State 19. Pekeur, Deslin Nat. Dipl. Office Technology 2 West Coast College 20. Ruiters, Ethan Nat. Dipl. Sport Management 2 Boland College 21. Snyman, Rowann B Com 3 CPUT* 22. Swart, Herschelle B Admin 3 Univ of the Free State 23. Swart, Peden Nat. Dipl. Elec Engineering 2 West Coast College 24. van Rooi, Vanessa B Tech (Hospitality) 3 CPUT* (Hotel School) *Cape Peninsula University of Technology Graduates 25. Afrika, Franco BA 3 Univ. of the Western Cape 26. Levendal, Cecil B Com 3 Univ. of the Western Cape 27. Nel, Grace Nat. Dipl. Safety & Security South Cape College 28. Windvogel, Callen Nat. Dipl. Management Boland College Some of these students receive support from the Rural Education Access Programme (REAP) and the Association for Educational Development (ASSET), all are signed up for the bursary/loan administered by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). While these sources cover the cost of tuition and accommodation, of concern is the fact that the Northlink hostels are self-catering and students there have to provide all their own meals. This situation has given rise to a serious problem described below. 9

10 FUNDING Core funding for the current financial year is largely secure thanks to the ELMA Foundation, the DG Murray Trust, the Claude Leon Foundation, the King Baudouin Foundation (BE), Stichting Projecten Zuid Afrika (NL), Education for Democracy in SA (UK), the Max Kohler Trust, an anonymous donor via Investec Private Clients, and the Dept. Of Social Development. As mentioned above, the generosity of Detlef Klapthor, Michael Chanarin and Brian Wides enabled us to acquire a 16-seater mini-bus. Gordon Browning funded the new extension to the building and Anne Page contributed to the Matric Outreach Programme. However, there are three areas of need. The first of these arises out of the situation described above, where our students at Northlink College are requred to provide their own food. All are from indigent homes which are unable to send cash on a regular basis. Net vir Pret has had no option but to step in and we have been paying a weekly sum to help these students. However, this expenditure is not budgeted for and we need to find a way of covering it. Our intention in the coming week is to launch an Adopt a Student appeal whereby members of the public can offer to help. Target R50,000 in total. The second need concerns Project Hope. We are in the process of constructing a two-year intervention which will deliver training in literacy, numeracy, life-skills and vocational skills to underage school drop-outs. Target R50,000. Lastly, we have long wished to be able to provide regular entertainment for Barrydale teenagers on a Saturday night and our intention is to run FILM CLUB at our centre. We need a projector and screen, blinds for the windows, seating, a hot-water urn and coffee mugs. Target R50,