Kids Haven will be a BCT golf day beneficiary
One of the charities which will benefit from the Benoni City Times Buco Rietpan Golf Day, on Wednesday, September 9, will be the Benoni-based Kids Haven.
Kids Haven opened in 1992, to serve the homeless/street children and children in crisis in the Ekurhuleni region and from Johannesburg.
The main centre is located in Benoni, with community teams addressing the needs of children throughout the region.
Kids Haven celebrates 23 years of service on October 13 and now accommodates up to 180 children between the ages of approximately six to 18 years.
Kids Haven won the Agfund International Award (Category Two) on the theme “Fighting the Phenomenon of Street Children” on January 14.
The core focus is pre- in- and post-care for street and street connected children, and volunteer engagement is welcome at the shelter and children’s home.
“Children living on the streets are some of the most marginalised and unprotected in the world.
“Many of these children are without parental care and have no viable alternatives … Surely in the era of cooperation on MDGs (millenium development goals) this cannot and should not continue to be the normative experience of children – anywhere.” Clacherty, Glynis & Walker, Joe (2011) Including Street Children. Street Action UK Charity page 6.
Kids Haven’ s vision is to rehabilitate and reintegrate children via the programme of care and advocacy for the rights of the street child and for the sector.
Kids Haven has an electronic data management system which keeps a unique file for every child, that is continuously updated with incidents, comments, reports, process notes and certificates. This means that all information is recorded and verifiable.
Children admitted to Kids Haven have significant deficits in normal socially acceptable behaviour as a result of their time on the streets or due to poor parenting and early trauma. All of the work, therefore, focuses on supporting behaviour change and providing the foundation required for good social development.
This means having a safe place to live; committed, loving and attentive adults who model right behaviour and care for children and being included in childhood activities of school, sport, and fun which develop character.
Every intervention at Kids Haven is seen as an opportunity to minimise the historic deficits in a child’s life and increase socially appropriate behaviour.
Childcare and social work is fundamental to this.
Kids Haven also implements all legal requirements for children living in care as prescribed in the Children’s Act 2005.
Kids Haven provides a basket of services to the children, so that the likelihood of positive reintegration into society is the outcome for every child who spends any time there.
Services rendered by Kids Haven include:
- Individual counselling and therapy
- Placement in bridging school upon admission
- Life skills programme
- Assessment process
- Group work for sexual offenders
- Placement at school
- Monitoring holiday visits
Moira Simpson (founder and director: Kids Haven) says: “Do we walk past him because he is unlovely? Do we blame him for all the crime in town? Are we afraid of him? Do we not see his pain? Do we even see him? Have we forgotten the call to kindness and mercy? The most vulnerable child has the rights of any other child.
“Many children have made Kids Haven their home over the past 21 years. We see their pain, they are our children. Here they have a chance to start over, to find their purpose in life.”
For further information about Kids Haven contact Susan Daly on 011 706 7959 at the donation centre, or email her on sued@kidshaven.co.za.
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