This project is full of choices! You can work with orphans and vulnerable children, or work on a farming project teaching young people how to grow their own food and live a sustainable life, and/or take a training course in care work  - you choose! You'll be based in the lively city of Pietermaritzburg, capital of KwaZulu Natal and you will fall completely in love with the children, the schools, and the country ... you have been warned!

The projects you'll assist are all for local people and children who are orphaned and are in foster care at the centre. You don't need any qualifications to do this project, just a love of children and a desire to help the community. All these projects are very worthwhile and will offer you a wealth of experience and a lifetime of memories.

►SUMMARY FACTFILE
Start Dates	All year round - you choose your start and finish dates!
Duration	From 1 week to three months or longer, subject to visa requirements.
Requirements	No qualifications required, just lots of enthusiasm and energy!
Price	From £695 / US$1,045 for 1 week, ranging to £2,795 / US$4,195 for 12 weeks. Full Price List and other Currencies
What's included	►Accommodation ►Food (excluding lunch) ►Meeting you at the Airport ►Transfer to your accommodation ►Transport to and from your project ►Full pre-departure support ►Local in-country team support and backup ►24-hr emergency support ►Free T-shirt
What's not included	Flights, Insurance, Cost of Visas (if a visa is required, but we'll provide necessary documents and assistance), Return transfer to the airport.
Who can do this Project?	All projects are open to all nationalities. You need to be aged between 17 and 70+ (unless otherwise stated)

On this page:

• Working with Vulnerable & Foster Children

• Working with Children at a Crèche
• Working with Gardening and Farming
• Doing Training courses in Care for Children
• Accommodation
• Optional Extra Activities you can do while on this project
• Travel & Visas

PROJECT OVERVIEW

WHAT YOU'LL GAIN FROM DOING THIS PROJECT:

• An exciting, never-to-be-forgotten adventure into Africa and the many diverse cultures in South Africa

• The enormous satisfaction of helping disadvantaged children and knowing that you made a difference to them.

• New skills, more confidence, a greater understanding of a different culture, invaluable personal and professional development.

• An entry on your CV or résumé that will put you head and shoulders above most others in the job market

• And best of all ... an unforgettable experience!

WORK CONTENT

WORKING WITH VULNERABLE & FOSTER CHILDREN
The children that the Home works with are either orphans or vulnerable children who may have had a violent up-bringing and who have been taken into foster care. The foster home has a number of orphaned and vulnerable children who live there. The children are aged between 14 months and 15 years of age and there are currently 18 orphans living in the Home. 

The foster home has volunteers who provide their help as well as a number of foster mothers who look after the orphans. The children all sleep at the Home and all their meals are provided. As with all orphans everywhere, these children need lots of love, care and attention because life for them is very bewildering and insecure. As a volunteer on this project, your assistance is gratefully received to help provide the attention that the children so richly need and deserve.

One of the many "side-benefits" of your assistance on this project is that the children are exposed to your culture and stories about your way of life. This opens a whole new world to them, one that is fascinating and which they would not otherwise get exposure to.

Your Work at the Home

• On your arrival you will have an Orientation during which you will learn about the home such as the history of the organization, who the staff are and what is required of you. This will also involve meeting the foster mothers and children of the home.
• Having completed the Orientation, you'll then start your work at the Home, learning the ropes from the foster mothers.
• There will be many ways in which your can provide practical assistance, such as helping to prepare the food for the children and then supervising them during the meals.
• You'll also wash the babies and supervise the older children during bathing times
• You'll assist with washing the children's clothes and ensuring that they are properly dressed.
• You'll help and support the foster mothers as they nurse and care for the babies and children doing all the everyday tasks that we take for granted, such as ensuring that they are bathed, dressed and generally looked after.
• You can help the children after school in many ways, including helping them with their school work, playing fun games with them during recreation times, and perhaps even entertaining them if you have any skills.
• You could perhaps teach them some singing, music or drama, or set them some beneficial but fun projects to achieve.
• Mostly, you can give them a lot of individual attention, something that is very necessary to their quality of life.

WORKING WITH CHILDREN AT A CRÈCHE
If you would prefer to work at a Crèche, this is also possible. The Crèche we work with is located 20km outside Pietermaritzburg in a rural village and is a playschool and nursery school. This placement will give you a great insight into rural South Africa and Zulu culture, but is located close enough to Pietermaritzburg where you will live to give you a great experience of South African city life as well.

The Crèche is located in an area where unemployment is very high. Local women leave their children at the Crèche whilst they go to work or go to look for work. The Crèche has around 34 children at any one time but there are always an extra 30 children on the waiting list - such is the demand for the service. Parents pay the Crèche a very small fee to contribute towards the services provided by the Crèche, but those who can't afford it don't have to pay anything.

Your Work at the Crèche

• On your arrival you'll receive an Orientation during which you will learn about the Crèche. Subjects that are covered include the history of the organization, who the staff are and what is required of you. This will also involve meeting the volunteers who run the Crèche. You will then start your work at the Crèche and will learn the ropes from the full time volunteers.
• You will be involved in all the daily tasks involved with running the Crèche, including playing with the children, feeding them and generally looking after them.
• Your activities could also include anything that may be required at the time you're there.
• Your help is greatly appreciated by the Crèche and the children and they will also gain from any input and ideas you may have to assist in the day-to-day running.
• You will be taken to and from the Crèche every day from your accommodation in Pietermaritzburg.

GARDENING AND FARMING PROJECT
As a volunteer on this project you can also get involved in a farming and gardening project that aims to teach men, women and young boys and girls about nutrition and how to care for their own vegetable gardens. It also covers how to provide food for themselves and how to earn an income from farming and gardening.  You'll find this an incredible experience that you will never forget.

You will be a Agricultural Trainer and go to each school, train the staff and parents who are available. In the case of Primary and High Schools, you'll train selected Learners who show an interest in the projects. The students are taught about nutrition, the soil, which vegetables to plant, how and when, and how to care for them. They are also taught how to market and to budget. The project covers all costs for the first harvest and then the school uses what they can of the harvest and sells the rest to the local community members at a reasonable cost. This money is put back into the project.

The cost of each garden varies as many have fences (to keep out wandering goats and cattle) but these are in a poor state of repair. They also require irrigation piping and tools etc. to set up and maintain the garden. At present the projects have to purchase their own seeds and seedlings and they want to raise the R93 000 required to establish their own Seedling Nursery which will supply their needs and those of the local communities.

During all the training we involve community members who request to be taught and we also supply them with seedlings, etc. and support services until they are able to work on their own. We encourage the grandmothers and grandfathers to join, as well as the unemployed youth in the area

• You'll work as an assistant to the project staff, helping in various different roles, depending on the requirements of each day.
• When you arrive, you'll receive an induction covering your work and what is required of you.
• As most of these projects are rural, you will be picked up each day from your accommodation in Pietermaritzburg and taken to the project site.

Got any questions? Please email us: info@travellersworldwide.com

LOCATION:
This project is based in the contemporary African city of Pietermaritzburg, and one of the really good things about Pietermaritzburg is how much it's got to offer in the way of sightseeing, exploring, tourism, adventure sports, cultural activities, and it is surrounded by glorious Nature, from beaches to parks and wildlife.

If it's Culture or Arts that interest you most, "Few cities personify the vibrancy of a contemporary African city better than Pietermaritzburg. Steeped in a history that speaks of Zulu, Boer, British and Indian influences, the city is a cultural treasure trove brimming with diversity and colour."

Faith Brammer describes a typical day on this project:

"I would be picked up by Christine at 7.30am to get there for 8am. Generally, the children would be having breakfast or bathing, so I would sit with them, and sometimes help them get dressed. Sometimes I would wash up the breakfast things. In the mornings, the younger children would go to the crèche, so I would play with the older children all morning. Generally, we played football, marbles, games outside such as “Police and Robbers” or “Stuck in the Mud”, cards and drawing and colouring. 

In the afternoons, I would play more of the same games with the children, including the younger ones, who had returned from the crèche. I love the children that I am working with, and I also think Christine the Volunteer Liaison has had a great positive impact on my trip – she’s been wonderful! I think I've gained experience in looking after and entertaining children. I also feel that I am more confident and better at talking to new people, as well as happier doing things independently."   

 
Got any questions? Please email us:
info@travellersworldwide.com

 
Some of the amazing children you will be able to work with on this project

Enhance your Programme with some exciting activities: