PICS: Early Care Foundation boosts local daycare centres

Tears filled the eyes of Zanele Mothupi as she shared her story about how her love for caring for children had grown because of one childcare development organisation.

Mothupi is the owner of a daycare centre in Alexandra, north of Johannesburg, that began operating in 2012.

She said, however, that her centre grew to another level after she heard about the Early Care Foundation (ECF) and the work they are doing in communities to improve daycare centres. ECF was previously known as ASHA Early Childhood Development.

Lesedi Daycare is pictured in Alexandra, Johannesburg, 11 February 2019. Picture: Tracy Lee Stark

“I joined ASHA in 2014, two years after I opened my daycare centre,” she said. “Before, I never knew how to handle my finances, my fees, my books.

“I would just use the fees up as soon as I got them. But as soon as I started going for training, my business changed for the better.”

Mothupi said the number of children in her centre had increased significantly after joining ECF and so has the number of professionals, including practitioners, she has hired.

Children take their nap at Lesedi Daycare in Alexandra, Johannesburg, 11 February 2019. Picture: Tracy Lee Stark

“I love working with children, especially playing with them. If you look at my phone, parents are always calling saying they love the work we are doing,” she said. “I thank [the foundation] because now I can manage my programme very well, if it wasn’t for them I would not even be here.”

Another woman with similar praise for ECF is Refilwe Zwane, who quit her job as a secretary to chase her dream of becoming an owner of a childcare centre in Alexandra.

Zwane said she faced a lot of challenges at the beginning because of her inexperience and lack of knowledge about the childcare industry. However, everything changed when she joined the ECF two years after officially opening her centre.

Owner of Day Dreamers creche, Zanele Mothupi, is pictured in Alexandra, Johannesburg, 11 February 2019. Picture: Tracy Lee Stark

“I’ve learnt so much and I am so delighted that I joined them,” said Zwane. “If you have problems, you can just call and ask anything.

“They have helped me so much because before I didn’t have a title deed and without it, the department of social development was refusing to help.”

Zwane said when she joined ECF in 2016, she started with four children and now her centre has grown to having 39 children.

ECF director Deidre Caulwell said: “We saw that women, especially ones in very poor areas, opened daycare centres but didn’t understand what the child’s needs were, or safety requirements and many other things. ”

– jenniffero@citizen.co.za

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