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"No one has yet realized the wealth of sympathy, the kindness and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure."

~Emma Goldman

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Archive Article 1
How to prepare your children to be safety conscious without making them completely paranoid.
By Liezel King

"The child associates the family home as the only place which will keep them safe but the reality is that attacks and break ins occur on a daily basis and children are exposed to the possibility by the media or at school."

"Parents need to establish what the children know about violence and how they interpret the messages from the media .This will help them explain what violence is and why a violent act has occurred. When the child asks if what he sees on TV will also happen to him or the family, parents should be honest and reassure the child that they will do everything in their power to protect the family. Implementing safety at home should be discussed with the child at their level of understanding. Rules regarding “do’s” and “don’ts” must be drawn up with the children........."

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The Parent Centre - Annual Report 2006

The year under review started well for The Parent Centre. Funders increased their grants, thus enabling the organisation to renew facilitator contracts, ensuring the continuation of the Teen Parent and Parent-Infant Intervention Programmes. It proved to be an enormous morale booster for the staff concerned and a welcome relief for the four communities in which these programmes had to be scaled down.

This is a clear indicator of donor satisfaction regarding the organisation’s capacity to manage its finances effectively, and a belief in its ability to render and sustain qualitative and relevant services.

Further acknowledgement of the value of the work of the Centre is its inclusion in the Victim Empowerment Programme, a pilot project initiated by the Directorate: Policy & Programme Design of the Department of Social Services & Poverty Alleviation and the Education Department. The focus of The Parent Centre is on the training of indigenous community leaders (Laingsburg, Philippi, Vrygrond, Mitchell’s Plain, Khayelitsha and Atlantis) and a small group of parents per area, in the field of Positive Parenting for the primary prevention of Child Abuse, Victimisation and Neglect.

The year also witnessed the forging of stronger links with a variety of NGOs via the Directors’ Forum, MSATS and other community-based forums, ensuring a more comprehensive and accessible service delivery.

Regrettably, we had to take leave of Jackie Bean who has been counselling and facilitating workshops at the Centre for the past four years. We wish her well in her private practice. The baton of fundraising also changed hands and we extend our appreciation to Tamzin Ractliffe for the smooth handover to her successor, Shirley Dunn.

The leave-taking of staff highlights the on-going concerns around the issue of the retention of staff, in the face of NGOs not being financially able to match the higher salaries and related benefits offered by the State Department and overseas organisations. This issue requires the urgent attention of both the state and public sectors as it impacts greatly on the maintenance of essential services. In addition the extension of these services to under-resourced areas in urban, and particularly rural settings, is also challenged.

A major area of management responsibility of NGOs is the monitoring and nurturing of staff who, on a daily basis, have to educate and support parents and caregivers. Many experience great distress in their attempts to raise the children in their care. Our sincere thanks to Elsabe O’Leary who generously offered her expertise in facilitating this essential process.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank:

Celeste Van der Merwe
Director

Read the full Annual Report 2006 (.pdf file)