Developmental
Social Services

Get Involved

Anelda Rabie Social Worker: Skills Training and Employment Worcester, Illze van Reenen Auxiliary Social Worker Worcester, Zara Davids Social Worker: Rawsonville, De Doorns and Touws River, Jurene Horne Senior Social Worker Worcester, Rozaan Makkemella Social Service Administrative Assistant, Jolene George Occupational Therapist.

Persons with disabilities, especially from impoverished communities, need to cope with everyday struggles related to a lack of equity and equal rights. The inequalities of modern day society as experienced by persons with disabilities around the globe, are now even more evident as a result of COVID-19, severely impacting on the dignity and livelihood of persons with disabilities.

The challenge of addressing poverty and inequality through social work services lies beyond the level of the provision of handouts of basic assistance. Breede Valley APD has to find creative ways in which to render developmental social services that are relevant to the personal needs experienced by persons with disabilities.

In 2019, the Breede Valley APD Developmental Social Service Model was designed to address these challenges in a creative but realistic way on community level to ensure positive change and results.

By focusing on person centered assessments and development – a way of helping people who want to make changes in their lives – and engaging and cooperating with our beneficiaries, communities, stakeholders and partners, we render a range of services to adults-, children- and families experiencing physical, intellectual and mental disabilities, blindness and deafness.

FAMILY PRESERVATION

The need for programs to attend to the needs of persons with disabilities living in their communities with their families, especially after discharge from hospital or crisis intervention, will be an ongoing need, especially with a lack of resources and infra-structure in our poverty stricken communities. This group of people and their families need to be supported, empowered and their skills need to be developed in order for them to become as independent and mainstreamed into society as efficiently as possible. They often have very few or no support systems to help them in making the correct choices in terms of health, rehabilitation, social values and integration into their respective communities in general, etc.

Through the Family Preservation Program, Breede Valley APD is mobilising and empowering volunteers associated with the organisation to provide managed support and services to persons and families with disabilities within their families and communities on a long- and/or short term bases, enabling persons and families with disabilities to reach an independent and optimal lifestyle.

GROWING TOGETHER

In September 2020, one of our longstanding partners, the Kinderfonds MAMAS, availed crucial emergency funding for sustainable food security. As partners in service delivery to the vulnerable, we realised that food parcels are not sustainable and it creates dependence and a culture of entitlement in our communities. On the other hand, home gardens provide long term sustainable food security and also contributes to empowering families.

After taking on the challenge of establishing food gardens with no existing gardens and no former experience, we were surprised at the possibilities and opportunities food gardens can provide. Although we have experienced many challenges (lack of land/space, lack of interest from beneficieries, damages due to heat/pets/pests, lack of guidance) we were very surprised with especially the establishment of the center based gardens – even on small pieces of land! It took a while for these gardens to really show promise, but they are now an integral part of the the feeding schemes at each of the participating special care centres. With the more established centre based gardens we are now in the favorable position to include gardening activities in our daily stimulation programme to encourage the children with disabilities to partake and learn in the process.

Get Involved: