The Bluff home for vulnerable children faces troubles over delay in subsidy payments

ST Monica’s Children’s Home, which needs about half a million rand each month to make ends meet, has found themselves struggling due to a delay in subsidy payments from the Department of Social Development.

Althea Govender, director of the home, said they are faced with financial challenges and are now appealing to the public and businesses for help.

The home, which is a registered non-profit, non-governmental organisation, houses 84 children from across the province: girls from ages three to 18, and boys from ages three to 12. It has six cottages, with 18 carers who work different shifts.

Read more: Deadline looms for NPOs to submit application for City’s grant-in-aid

Govender said the home provides a safe environment and care for children who have been abandoned, orphaned or removed from their families due to severe neglect and/or abuse.

She said, with the delay in payments, she fears that the children’s well-being will be compromised. “Historically, we received our subsidy payments after we submitted information on how many children we had and the relevant court documents at the end of each month. We are paid the following month. The department held a meeting in July this year, where we were informed that we would be receiving tranche payments starting from October. This would be payments for three months in advance.

“We were shocked as we were not consulted. They did not care to ask how this would affect us and our monthly running of the home. We were also previously paid per child, so how would it work? It became worse as we did not get our payment in August for July. We had to start reaching out for help to make sure we paid our bills. We couldn’t allow our utilities to go into arrears or not pay our suppliers for food. We only received that payment in September. Last week, we were paid for August. We are still waiting for the tranche payment,” she said.

Govender said this has now put them in a difficult situation.

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“We have suppliers that need to be paid and will not give us any more extensions. We need at least R550 000 per month for our core costs, which are astronomical. The utility bills are between
R80 000 to R90 000, while the cost for basic food items is over R100 000. We also have to pay school transport, fuel, security and part of our staff’s salaries.

“We depend on the department as they provide us with our main source of income. The directors from various NPOs in the province have since formed a committee and have been writing to the various stakeholders, demanding answers. To date, 80% of NPOs in the province, including our home, have not received the tranche payment,” she said.

In a statement, the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Social Development said tranche payments for September, October and November were successfully disbursed to most NPOs in the King Cetshwayo, uThukela, Umzinyathi, eThekwini North and eThekwini South districts. They said the remaining payments were expected to be made on October 17 and 26.

“We reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that all funded NPOs receive their payments by October 31, as previously promised by MEC Nonhlanhla Khoza during roadshows in August.

Read more: Home for vulnerable children appeals for help

“The department remains dedicated to supporting NPOs and ensuring the uninterrupted delivery of essential services to end-users. Khoza has actively expedited the tranche payments to enhance service delivery, with the primary goal of minimising any delays in reaching end-users efficiently,” it read.

For more information on how you can assist the home, call 031 468 8656 or 082420 4168. You can also email admin@stmonicas.org.za.

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