Children celebrate Safe Parks
Bishop Simeon Trust, Themba Interactive and the University of Leeds collaborated in the celebration of Isibindi Safe Parks for vulnerable children last Thursday.
KwaThema – KwaThema Old Age home was abuzz with activity as children from 10 safe parks around Ekurhuleni celebrated these havens.
Martin Keat, director of Bishop Simeon Trust, says Bishop Simeon Nkoane, an Anglican bishop and dedicated anti-apartheid activist, had a vision that the future of South Africa rested in the hands of the children.
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“Their protection and education is always a priority.
“To adapt to the needs of the children in Ekurhuleni, we adopted the Isibindi Safe Parks model.”
The Bishop Simeon Trust is a UK based charity working in partnership with local communities to transform the lives of vulnerable children in South Africa.
The Safe Park Model is a project of the National Association of Child Care Workers (NACCW) and is being replicated across South Africa by over 20 organisations.
Safe Parks seek to provide safe places for children to play where they have access to adult supervision.
“This is especially important for children heading households.”
He believes that the key ingredient for the success of the model is the nurturing and exciting presence of child and youth care workers.
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“The Bishop Simeon Trust has adopted 10 safe parks in Ekurhuleni.
“We seek to help the organisations that run the parks meet the standards set by NACCW.”
The Safe Park model offers the possibility of wholesome fun in the context of desperate lives – an essential ingredient for overcoming hardship.
“We used an arts-based angle to encourage the children to share what they are going through.
“We encourage them to advocate for others and have a voice in their communities.”
He says they want to ‘change their story’.
“If they use their imagination, they realise that things can be different.
“The circumstances do not have to be the way they are.”
The children who are part of the safe parks are referred usually by school teachers and social workers.
They all took turns in their groups to express how the safe parks have changed their lives.
The safe parks are operational before and after school.
The NACCW offers training for the youth and child care workers.
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